


Kingdom Hearts: Shattered Memories

by Bola8



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games), 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Midoriya Izuku Has One for All Quirk
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-08
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 01:00:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 22,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29925513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bola8/pseuds/Bola8
Summary: Izuku dream aways was to become a hero, but when suddenly another type of dream started to appear, showing things he never thought possible, his life would change forever.
Relationships: Bakugou Katsuki & Midoriya Izuku, Eri & Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Izuku/Uraraka Ochako
Comments: 9
Kudos: 20





	1. A new journey

CHAPTER 1: A NEW JOURNEY

Between the cosmos there are countless worlds, each one different, but all share one destiny, one sky.

But that’s not what this story is about, this is a story about a brave light who made the ultimate sacrifice. A hero who will find himself on the path of greatness one more time.

This is the story of Midoriya Izuku, the Keyblade Master, the Heroic Thunderbolt, the Symbol of Peace.

* * *

A scattered dream that’s like a far off memory. A far-off memory that’s like a scattered dream.

I wanna line the pieces up- yours and mine.

* * *

I’m falling into darkness, drifting in a void for what feels like hours, but it could be only seconds.

To every direction that I look there is only black, and the silence is deafening. I wouldn’t even distinguish up from down if I was not falling.

The only thing I can see is myself. But who am I? You are questioning, well to answer this I have to come back a little.

* * *

200 years ago, a baby capable of emitting light was born in China. That was the first documented case of quirks.  
Quirks, superpowers only seen in comic books, became real overnight.

Chaos befell the world. Governments crumble, riots were widespread, it almost seemed like all hope was lost.  
But when darkness rises there is always a light that shines just as bright.

Heroes. People with brave hearts and a desire to do what is right.

Years have passed since then and heroics isn’t just an ideal, it’s a profession, a career, but for some, it is still a dream.

My name is Midoriya Izuku, and my dream is to be a hero.

But not all men are created equal.

That's a reality I learned at the age of four.

I’m quirkless. From that day on it seemed as if the world was against my dream.

“You better give up”

To put me down...

“I’m sorry Izuku, I’m so sorry”

To make me believe I am worthless...

“You useless Deku”

But not even the world can stop me from reaching my dreams, because I know that I will become a hero.

* * *

Why am I falling for what seems like forever? How did I get here? I can’t remember.

I start to lose hope, when will I ever get out of here? A light hits my eyes, looking up (down?) I find myself standing on a pillar cutting through the darkness. On that pillar, a stained glass image of...ME?!

I’m in a green tracksuit with white shoulder pads and gloves, the gloves go all the way to my elbows, looking more like gauntlets than gloves. On my neck is a metallic mouthpiece with some holes on it. I wore black knee pads and my usual red shoes, but with what looked like metallic black soles.

In the image I see myself reaching my right arm out as if I’m reaching for something… or someone.

On my left hand is what looks like a… giant car key?

A blade?

It had a green body (blade) with a silver edge, a black handguard and a red handle. A silver chain was attached at the base with a charm that looks like a silver star with two lightning bolts crossed at the middle to form an X.

Below my right arm are two disks, one with five pictures displayed in five directions, at the bottom are two people with mutant quirks, at the left a duck and the right a dog.

In the middle two there is a girl with straight hair and a kind smile while on the left a boy with long hair and a smirk.

The top and final one held a boy with spiky hair and a sunny smile, but the strangest thing is that he felt...familiar.

The other disk was void of any images, but I could feel that they would eventually be filled.

Looking around, I can see just how breathtaking the stained glass image is. I heard footsteps behind me. I panicked for some reason, I knew that people shouldn’t be here, turning around I met face to face with…MYSELF?!

Standing before me is someone exactly like me, but their clothes were different. He (me?) is in a white t-shirt under a dark green jacket with a hood shaped with bunny ears, black loose pants, red shoes and two belts crossing and forming an X with some type of heart emblem.

But the biggest difference is his smile. It was brilliant and peaceful, as if there's nothing wrong in the world and that is enough reason to smile.

"W-Who are y-you" I asked nervously.

He laughed, as if the answer was obvious,"What type of question is that? I’m you" he said, putting his hands behind his head.

I jumped back, this was getting too weird, "W-What?! How c-can you b-be me?"

"I am, simple as that but that’s not what you are here. You’re here to get back something you lost."

"S-Something I lost, w-what?" What could I possibly lose and how me-HE (that is so confusing) know that I lost something?

The copycat placed a hand over his chest, "Something that you’ve kept close to your heart, but had to give away to protect the people you cared about the most."

"A-And what could i-it be?" What I could possibly sacrifice for someone, and who the someone might be?

"That would just ruin the surprise" he smiled, stretching the hand previously on his chest towards me.

I stared at it for a second and looked back at him, he still smiled encouragingly to me. With some hesitation I took his hand….and my world went dark.

* * *

" _S̷̹̿o̵̻̫̊́ŗ̷̪̭̏a̶͍̟̽ come on!"_

_"We will go and find new worlds together!"_

  
_"Izuku get up! The storm is gonna take the raft!"_

  
_"Wait for me S̷̹̿o̵̻̫̊́ŗ̷̪̭̏a̶͍̟̽"_

  
_"Go find K̶͇͝͠ä̸̫̀i̶̹̕r̸͆͘͜i̸͙̹͐! I'll buy you time"_

  
_"If you wanna get my b̵͍̐̒r̵̠̊͗̔ỏ̸̠͉͝ṱ̷͓͇̑ȟ̴̳͜e̵͔͊͗̇r̷̢̰͓̊͠ ̶͈̀ you'll have to pass me first!"_

  
_"That is a big one!"_

  
_"Izuku aim for the face!"_

  
_"Huf huf we did it-woah!"_

  
_"S̷̹̿o̵̻̫̊́ŗ̷̪̭̏a̶͍̟̽ don't let go!!!"_

  
_"If I don't then I'll drag you with me"_

  
_"Then we go together!!!"_

  
_"AAAAAAAAA!!!!!"_

* * *

Izuku woke up screaming, he bolted straight up the bed taking deep breaths. Once he calmed himself down, he turned to look out the window to see the rising sun.

Trying to understand what just happened, Izuku just stared and felt...sad. A lone tear swelled down his face, a normal occurrence for him. This time was different though, this time he let it fall and think...Why? What made him so sad if he couldn’t even clearly remember it-ah that's it...he couldn’t remember, that’s what made him cry. Maybe it’s just the heart remembering.

But Izuku felt that someday he would. "May your heart be your guiding key," he murmurs absent-mindedly, even if he can't recall where he heard it, it always makes him feel better...because he is never alone.

It’s another day in Musutafu, the birds are singing, the flowers are blooming, a giant monster is destroying the street.

"RRROOOOOAAAARRRR!"

Perfectly normal.

Izuku, a boy with curly green hair and freckles, is making his way to where the commotion is located. There he saw a man with what looked like wooden armor, Kamui Woods fighting the giant villain.

Izuku is wearing a black middle school uniform, a yellow backpack, and big red shoes. While he would normally be excited to see the hero and villain fight, he currently has a far off look on his face, like he's not really here, lost in thought, "What was that dream about? It doesn't make sense, who are those people? Why can't I remember them? What are I doing with them…" He mumbled, holding a hand over his mouth.

CRASH!

Jumping in shock, Izuku is brought out of his thoughts and finally realizes the hero at the scene, "What-whoa a villain, and that’s Kamui Woods, SO COOL!"

His previous thoughts are forgotten, taking a notebook from...somewhere, he starts writing, "He’s climbing the ranks really fast for a relatively new hero and…" he mumbles, as he writes his observations from the fight.

When it looks like the wooden hero is just about to end the fight.

  
"Canyon Cannon!" a new hero appears, kicking the giant villain and knocking him out.

Izuku turns towards the new arrival, "Whoa, who is th-" only for a flash of what felt like a memory to pass through his mind. A being towered over him and his...he doesn't know, the only thing he is certain is of beady yellow eyes. He didn’t remember this being, he had no memory of ever meeting it, but for some reason seeing it filled his heart with fear.

"Hey kid!" A man in the crowd cried, breaking the image."I know what you are, a fanboy!"

"W-Wha-yeah I-I am."

"Well, you want to be a hero?"

"Y-Yes!, more than anything"

"Well then go for it." the man said, laughing encouragingly.

Izuku gives back a smile, "Thank you, sir!" He takes off running (because he is not supposed to stop to begin with, he's late for school).

As he runs his mind once again goes back to the strange dream, and now the sudden vision. “What was that? And why did I feel so...afraid?”

Class passed in a blur for Izuku, he just kept thinking about his dream. He was so distracted in fact that he barely realized the disaster walking towards him.

BOOM! The sound of the explosion filled his ears as the sight of black smoke invaded his vision.

"What part of don't get on my way, you don't understand, Deku?!"

Slowly turning towards the voice Izuku is met with the sight of a boy with ashy blond hair and gleaming red eyes. The boy was holding up a sparkling and cackling hand as if in preparation for another explosion. Bakugo Katsuki. Izuku's childhood-friend turned bully. Who had decided to publicly confront him right after their teacher (disregarding all conduct norms) told the entire class of his plans of applying to UA.

The number one institution responsible for the most well known heroes in Japan. Best Jeanist, the number 4 hero and multiple time winner of the best jeanist competition. Endeavor, number 2 hero, the one with more cases solved. And finally All Might, the greatest hero of the world, the number one, the Symbol of Peace.

Of course at the first sign of the resident quirkless student expressing interest in the school, his classmates are quick to reprimand or mock him. They laugh at the very thought that the one person without superpowers can get into the prestigious school when they themselves have no shot at even entering. The written exam is said to be killer and while they can see Izuku passing that, the heroics exam would only kill the quirkless student.

But that doesn't stop Bakugo from getting furious, the smoking desk is proof of that. "I’m the only one in this shithole school that is going to UA!"

Izuku could only stare. Years ago they were friends, but now the walking bomb could only look at him with rage. Where did things go so wrong?

Bakugo takes the notebook from Izuku’s desk, "Listen here nerd if you go, you’re only getting yourself killed, so do us all a favor and don't bother!" He looks at the notebook, "Hero journal number XIII, are you serious!? How many times do I have to tell you so it gets on that fucking head YOU CAN'T BE A HERO!" He slams his palm against the notebook causing an explosion along the outside.

BOOOMM!

Izuku watches horrified as his notebook is blown up and thrown out the window.

Bakugo turns around and starts heading off with his followers, "That’s the last warning, don't apply to UA Deku!" As if he hadn’t had enough fun tormenting his former friend, he pauses at the door, "If you want to be a hero so bad, then pray that you'll get a quirk in your next life and take a swan dive off the roof."

At the sound of those words Izuku wasn't looking at his bully anymore, but someone with a black cloak, silver hair, and yellow eyes that seemed to pierce his soul.

Izuku shook his head, that didn’t look right. As quickly as it happened, it was over with Izuku standing in an empty class, "Not again.." He got his things, and ran outside, looking for his missing notebook.

Finding it on the koi pond, he quickly retrieves it. "What was that about? Who was he and-" Getting rid of the excess of water he looks at the book, seeing most of the damage being external. He can still see the title, when his eyes pass at the volume he feels a sudden pang of dread.

Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he put the journal back in his backpack and started heading home."How can this day get any weirder?" Izuku asked himself as he walked through a tunnel.

* * *

 _"No frowning, no sad faces, our ship runs on smiles_!"

* * *

He jumped at the seemingly random thought, he tried to recall where he heard it from but still nothing. Although, just thinking about it brought a smile to his face. "They’re right, I have to keep going and smile, like All Might!" Izuku let out his best impression of All Mights laughter.

Only he wasn’t alone under that tunnel, "A medium size meat suit, perfect."

Turning towards the sound of the voice Izuku came face to face with what looked like a giant pile of sludge. "A villain!" He could barely react before the villain threw himself at the younger boy.  
"Don't worry kid it will only hurt for 40 seconds and it's over." The sludge man laughed maliciously, forcing himself down the boy's throat, the sludge blocking Izuku's windpipe.

'That’s it? I'll die before even trying? No! Someone please HELP!' Izuku thought as he clawed desperately at the villain.

As if hearing his prayers the manhole at the tunnel entrance blows open and from it comes a man two meters tall who jumps out of it, **"DON'T FEAR, BECAUSE I AM HERE!"** He shouts with explosive intensity.

"No! Get away you bastard!" The Sludge Villain shouts, desperately.

The stranger doesn’t listen, clenching his fist into a punch, **"TEXAS SMASH!"** He punches the air using the force of it to create a mini whirlwind blowing the villain away.

The villain had barely enough time to think, let alone defend himself before being soundly defeated.

Finally free from his sludge prison, Izuku falls on the ground, the last thing he sees is the shadow of the man who saved him.

* * *

_"Izuku wake up!"_

  
_"Humm? S̴͚͂̔̏͒ơ̴̹̥̠̌r̵̨̤͎̝̈́͛å̴͉͊͆?"_

  
_"Where are we? R̴̡̜̗̔I̶͍̟͝K̵̢̞͎̒̕U̶̲͘!̸̳̔͑̇ ̷̣͕̮̅͌̉͠K̶̢͓̹͌̽̃A̴̳̾I̷̛̫̯̤̒R̴̡̠̎̃͋ͅI̵̫̓̍̅!̸̻̂"_

  
_"A Keyblade?"_

* * *

**"HEY KID WAKE UP!"**

"Urhg w-what?" Izuku slowly, wake up, he feels someone lightly slapping his cheek.

 **"HAHA I THOUGHT I LOST YOU FOR A SECOND, SORRY FOR THE TROUBLE,” His saviour says, “I TRIED TO CHASE THE VILLAIN, BUT THE SEWER SYSTEM OF THIS PLACE IS REALLY CONFUSING!"** He places his hand over his face and laughs at the mixup.

Blinking the spots of his sight he finally sees his savior and…  
"ALL MIGHT!"

Completely freaked out.

"W-What?! H-How?! Wait an autograph, I-I need an autograph!" Izuku panics this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, he can’t miss this. He searches for his backpack. He needed a pen, marker, paper, anything!

Finding his stuff at his side he scrambles toward the discarded notebook frantically looking for an empty page. “HE SIGNED IT ALREADY!” Izuku started mumbling and bowing frantically, this was a dream come true. "THANK YOU! IT WILL BE A FAMI…"

 **"HAHA NO PROBLEM KID! NOW THAT I CAPTURED THE VILLAIN I'LL BE ON MY WAY"** All Might showed two soda bottles containing the villain (somehow?) before putting them in his cargo pants pockets.

"W-What!? Are you already going?!" Izuku still had so many questions. “Wait, please I still have to ask you… I have to know if…”

All Might wasn’t listening, he crouched down preparing to jump. Izuku was desperate at this point for any more time with the symbol of peace and now personal hero. It all happened so fast one minute he was on the ground the next he was in the air…  
.  
.  
.  
Holding onto All Mights leg. Flying over buildings.

"HUM?” All Might was none the wiser, until he noticed the extra weight, **“WOAH KID I LIKE MY FANS BUT THAT IS A LITTLE TO MUCH! LET GO!".**

"B-B-BUT IF I LET GO I'LL DIE!"

 **"OH, GOOD POINT, HOLD ON I WILL LAND ON SOMEWHERE SAFE"** All Might turned his face away from him. 'I’m almost out of time' he thought, wiping a line of blood leaking from his mouth.

"I saw my life flashing through my eyes," Izuku is on the ground huffing and puffing from his trip on the symbol of peace. They landed on a rooftop.

 **"WELL KID KNOCK ON THE DOOR AND SOMEONE WILL LET YOU GO BACK DOWN, NOW I HAVE TO GO"** All Might said, preparing to leave the fanboy to his own devices..

"W-What wait I have to ask you something!"

 **"NO, I HAVE TO GO NOW!"** All Might approached the edge. He didn’t have time for this.

"CAN SOMEONE QUIRKLESS BE A HERO?!" Izuku blurted, hoping against hope he would finally get the answer he wanted.

  
'What! He is-no crap not yet!' The hero pauses his walk before beginning to steam and deflate.

Izuku continued on, oblivious to his hero's dramatic change. He had his eyes glued to the floor as he poured out his story. "All my life nobody believed in me, but even with the whole world saying it is impossible, can someone like me be a hero like you-WHOA?!" Izuku looks up, only to see a skeleton of a man where All Might was. "Who are you!? What happened with All Might!?"

  
The man opened his mouth to answer, for an unhealthy amount of blood to shoot out of it.

"AAHHH!" Izuku understandably freaks out. “Are you okay? No stupid question of course you are not, I’ll call help just wait a little and…"

As he starts to run towards the door, the man says. "Hey, kid hold on, I’m fine!".

Toshinori was surprised that the boy, who only a second ago acted like meeting All Might was the most important thing in the world for him. How could he not when this fanboy literally attached himself to him? Now this same fanboy is putting his well-being as top priority in this situation, when he went through all this trouble to ask a question.

Toshinori normally didn’t like people treating him differently because of his appearance, but he couldn't risk letting his secret get exposed (more than it already is). Calming the boy and sitting against the edge. He tells the kid the truth and shows his wound.

"Five years ago, was it in your fight with Toxic Chainsaw?" The boy asked.

Again he was surprised but just told the kid that that fight doesn't go public by his request. "So kid with all this said I have to tell you no, heroes are always risking their lives and they need power, I mean look at me I had power and this job got me this, so someone quirkless without power, I don’t think they can be a hero."

When Izuku hears those words it’s as if nothing exists anymore, his whole world turns black, he can only think about those words.

Can't be a hero

After so much time is this really it? An impossible dream?

* * *

_"We are heroes!"_

_"It doesn't matter how many times you put me down, I won't stop, I will get up and fight, BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT HEROES DO!"_

* * *

Izuku looks up, All Might is gone, and the flash of the vision leaves him lost.

'That was my voice, but I don't remember saying that' Izuku stands in a daze and walks without thinking. 'Who I was talking to? And why do I feel like there's a pain in my chest?'  
Lost in thought he kept walking barely realizing where, until...

BOOOMM!

Snapping his head up Izuku sees a scene of chaos and destruction. Buildings on fire, explosions and heroes trying to save the people.

He dashed towards the crowd, trying to see what was going on. He heard the people standing there talking to each other.

"What happened?"

"A villain got a kid as hostage and is using him to keep the heroes away"

"It is a middle schooler."

"That is low even for a villain"

Izuku starts to worry. 'A student, who is it? And why are the heroes not trying to do anything? People can get hurt-' his train of thought stops when he sees the villain.

The same villain that attacked him. The same villain that All Might captured. The same villain that is causing chaos in front of him.

'No, no no no it's my fault,’ Izuku’s mind spirals into a panic, ‘the bottles were in All Might's pockets and I grabbed his leg, the villain must have gotten away, I used All Might's time, and now someone is going to die because of me-' The thoughts stop when his eyes meet a familiar pair of red eyes. Eyes trapped within the clutches of the villain.

Eyes he knew too well. Eyes that usually just show hate towards him. Eyes that are now screaming for help.

Before he even realized, Izuku was running towards the villain.

* * *

_"The Keyblade is a wonderful weapon, capable of vanquish the darkness"_

  
_"Why do we have them with us?"_

  
_"Because they choose you two"_

  
_"But why?"_

  
_"Because you are worthy."_

* * *

As he ran, Izuku unconsciously raised his hand as if to grab something. A flash of light and green sparks danced in Izuku's hand to reveal a blade about 120 cm in length, and broad enough to cover most of his body. It took a single look for him to recognize the weapon. It was the one he saw in his dream! Despite his appearance, it felt almost weightless in his hand.  
Grasping it with two hands he continued running, it felt natural, like he has charged into danger with it hundreds of times.

  
Looking at the villain, he recalled a journal entry and knew exactly what to do.

Twisting his body in a fluid motion he hit a stone on the street with a strike using his weapon, faster than a comet the projectile hit the villain dead on in the eye.

  
The Sludge Villain screamed in pain releasing his hold on the hostage just long enough for him to get a mouthful of much needed air.

Bakugo gasped and greedily took those breaths, using this chance he looked up and saw the usual cause of his fury running at him. "Deku what the hell are you doing here!"

  
Closing in and swinging his blade, Izuku sends blobs of sludge flying. "I don't know! My legs move on their own, but I can’t just let my friend die!".

The Sludge Villain screamed in frustration, "You again, I’ll show you to not mess with me your stupid brat!" The villain prepares to strike.

Izuku quickly puts his right hand on the handle above his head and his left arm on the flat of the blade. Getting into a stance that was both new and natural at the same time. He blocked the attack, but the villain continued to press on. The barrage of attacks makes Izuku's arms tremble, until finally his guard breaks causing him to fall to the ground.

"Now I'm gonna get rid of you!" Seeing the strike coming, Izuku puts his weapon in front of him, closing his eyes and waiting for the end.

BANG!

 **"I REALLY AM PATHETIC, I SAY THAT HEROES ARE ALWAYS RISKING THEIR LIVES, BUT NOW IT IS TIME TO PRACTICE WHAT I PREACH, DETROIT** **SSMMMAAAAASSSSSHHHHHHHH!!!!"**

With a single punch, it’s over. Not only did the wind pressure defeat the villain, but it also put out the fires. The shear power and pressure of the punch even caused it to rain, leaving all bystanders gobsmacked.

Izuku got scolded by the pros for his trouble, but he wasn't paying attention . No, he was thinking about what he had done. How he had run head first into danger and that-his Keyblade manifested. How he knew what it was, it’s as if he always knew, but forgot about it. Maybe that’s what happened, if the feeling of finding a long lost friend was any indication.

After the metaphorical slap on the wrist, he was now walking home. Trying to understand what was happening, and why he felt so at peace with it. Until the sound of loud footsteps approached him.

"Deku! Wait up you bastard!" Bakugo runs to a stop in front of him trying to regain his breath. “Listen here you shitty nerd you better tell me why you lied!"

"K-Kacchan, lie a-about what?" Izuku tried to recall what he could possibly have lied about, only to think up nothing.

"What?! ABOUT YOUR DAMN QUIRK! All these years and you laughed at me while hiding it!" The blonde blows up (figuratively), but what he wasn't expecting was for the other boy to shout back.

"I don't have a quirk! I don't know what this is!" With a flick of his wrist the Keyblade materialized in a flash of green light and sparks. "I don't know why I have it! I JUST DON'T KNOW!" He throws it at the ground and both boys watch as it slides to a stop, before vanishing in another flash of light, reappearing in Izuku's hand.

They just stared at the Keyblade, after a long and silent minute the blonde turns around and starts walking away "I don't care that you have a toy sword now, I’m still gonna be the number one! So just don't get on my way and try not to die, Deku!". He still sounded pissed, but also in a weird way relieved. At least Izuku hopes so.

With a movement of the hand Izuku dismissed his Keyblade and started walking home again. But he was interrupted, again.

 **"I AM HERE"** All Might surges from one alleyway, stopping the boy.

"All Might, what are you doing here? I thought the reporters had gotten you" At this point Izuku was too mentally tired to be surprised.

 **"HAHA! I ESCAPED FROM THEM, BECAUSE I'M ALL MIGH-BLEEG"** In a burst of steam, the hero deflate coughing blood, "Sorry, but now young men let's talk for why am I here"

"I know what I did was stupid and I only got in the way, but no one tried to help Kacchan, so I just moved and-" Izuku started to rant, only to be stopped by a hand on his left shoulder.

"Kid, calm down, that’s not what I want to talk about, what I want to say is, I'm sorry." Toshinori finished with a sigh, leaving Izuku completely lost.

"You’re sorry? About what? I was the one that let the villain get away! If someone has to apologize it's me-" Izuku had his second rant stopped by one chop on the head.

"Geeze kid relax, now let me finish, I’m sorry that I said those things to you at the rooftop, but from the way you said it I thought you were quirkless and-"

Izuku promptly interrupts the man again, "I am".

"What"

"I said that I am quirkless"

"But young man I saw you use your quirk to fight that villain."

Izuku raises his hand, summoning his Keyblade again. "This isn't a quirk, it's a Keyblade" he’s so certain of it even if he didn’t have any idea what a Keyblade is.

"Well kid, if it's not a quirk then how did it just pop into your hand?" Toshinori points to the weapon like it is obvious.

"I don't know, I just started to run and it appeared in my hand!"

"Wait are you telling me that when you ran at that villain you didn't even know you could do that"

"No! I didn't even realize that I was running until it showed in my hand! I just saw Kacchan in danger and my legs moved on their own.”

'This kid just threw himself into the fray without even knowing he had a quirk? Maybe he is the one? But first-'

"Young man, when you had your quirk tested when you were a child what the doctors say?"

Izuku, is taken aback by the question, "I don't know. I don’t really remember, most of my childhood, it’s kinda fuzzy, but I think he said something about an extra toe joint"

'So he really is quirkless! But then how can he do that? Maybe he’s just an exception to the rule. I mean my quirk exists.'

"Well kid that doesn't change anything at the end of the day, you were the one who rushed to help where we, the so called pros, kept watching from the sidelines, so I have to rectify my answer."

Izuku was already at the brink of tears, All Might was praising him, it was like a dream.

The setting sun seemed to frame the hero like a light somehow making this moment just as memorable than he could ever hope it to be. "YOU CAN BECOME A HERO."

That was what broke the floodgates, falling on his knees, Izuku could only cry, finally someone said the words that he so desperately needed to hear.

"But that's not all, in the end who inspired me to act was you, your heroic spirit was what made me act, the greatest quality of one hero is the ability to inspire, and for that I choose you to be my successor, my quirk is yours if you accept."

"Hum?" Was the completely eloquent response, but that was to be expected in this situation."You can pass your power?" 'Why does that ring a bell?'

"Yes this quirk is called One For All," Toshinori raised his hand and from it a multicolored light appear, "One person takes the power and cultivate it, then passes it for another, that cycle has repeated eight times and I'm offering for you to be the ninth holder of One For All"

In that moment Izuku felt like he had done this before, that he was in that exact situation, so he followed his heart and said what he felt right, "I accept!".

"In your hand take this key..."  
"So long as you have the makings, then through this simple act of taking…it's wielder you shall one day be"

And that is the beginning of the journey, of how a boy accepted two legacies, and rose to be a guardian for all those in need.


	2. The Day

**CHAPTER 2: THE DAY**

_"I'll find you guys sooner or later!" A boy, no older than four cried, walking on a beach. He was wearing a white shirt, green shorts, and slippers._

_He looked around, cupping his hands over his mouth, "You two can't hide forever!" When he got no answer, the boy pouted, slumping forward. "Aw, why do I always have to search first?" His companions had gone off to hide and it was always so frustrating, looking for them._

_"Who are you looking for?" A voice behind him asks._

_"Whoa!" The boy jumps in surprise. Turning around he was face to face with a blue haired woman. "W-Where did you come from?" The boy asked nervously, his parents away said it was dangerous to talk with strangers._

_"I could ask you the same thing, are you here all alone?" The woman kneeled, making herself smaller to the boy._   
  
_The boy shook his head, "No, I'm here with my friend and my b̴̧̲̱͖͍̓̅͝r̶̡͇͓̊̄ơ̶͚̦̠̪͊̈͑͌t̶̢̯̦̞̏h̶̢̹̟̓̈́͝e̷̗̭̓̈́̌̀ř̷̫͖͂̄̚, my dad brings us here to play,” he pouts, crossing his arms over his chest. “even if I have to keep my eyes on them all the time."_

_The woman giggles. "So you are the responsible one? I know how it is, you turn your back for a second and they run for who knows where"._

_"Yeah! Finally someone who gets it! I just want them to stay safe, so I have to look out for them"_

_"Well if you want to take care of them then you better have something to protect them and yourself" she raises her hand, in a flash of light appears a...key? She holds it by the body, offering him the handle._

_The boy looked at it confused, he looked at the woman, she wore an encouraging smile, he shyly raised his hand to grab it. She smiled at him and started to say-_

* * *

BEEP-BEEP

Izuku wakes to the sound of his alarm. The dream he was having is still fresh in his head. 'What was I doing on a beach? Who was that woman? Why was she so familiar?' Izuku slipped out of bed, getting ready for the day, All Might told him to meet him for training and he couldn't be late.

Taking a quick shower, putting on a fresh set of clothes, a simple t-shirt with 't-shirt' written on it, loose pants, and a belt. But when he put the belt he felt something off, like it wasn’t complete. Looking at his wardrobe, he takes another belt, crossing it with the one he is wearing, forming an X.

He doesn't know why, it simply felt natural. Leaving a note for his mother he leaves the house.

After the incident with the Sludge Villain she had been worried about what happened to him, that is to be expected, but later she had that distant look on her face, Izuku tried to figure out what was bothering her but when he asked she would just change the subject.

While trying to figure out what could be wrong, Izuku arrived at the location All Might told him to go, Dagoba Municipal Beach. The place was a dump, with mountains of trash occupying the beach. That was a common sight, the beach became a junkyard years ago. Even though it was unlawful to dump trash, people just didn’t care enough to do anything about it. 

Izuku placed a hand over his chest, clenching where his heart is. Why did Izuku feel his heart aching? Looking at the state of this beach, it shouldn’t be like this. It was tragic. He couldn't stand it, resolving himself he started to clean the beach. He was so wrapped up in his self imposed task, he didn’t notice All Might arriving.

"Young Midoriya, I see you’ve already begun your training" All Might was in his skinnier form standing surprised that the boy is already cleaning without any prompting. That only makes the pro even surer about his choice. 

"All Might! H-Hi, and what training? I'm only cleaning." Izuku tilts his head in confusion. He didn’t see how cleaning a beach would be considered training, maybe to build character?

"Well young Midoriya, it would be quite the workout when you clean the WHOLE beach." Toshinori expected the boy to flip with such a task, but to his surprise Izuku smiled and nodded.

"You’re right,” Izuku clenched his fists, “that way I'll be able to prepare for the UA's entrance exam and clean the beach".

All Might nods, it seems this kid was getting it, "Yes, not all hero work is glamorous, so this is gonna be a good lesson of humility for you." He takes a packet of papers from his pocket, "You mentioned UA’s entrance exam, this thing here is a training plan, it’s going to be hard, but if you follow it I'm sure you will pass with flying colors!”

* * *

_"Us three are gonna pass this exam with flying colors! Just you wait, we'll be masters in no time!"_

* * *

Izuku shook his head at the vision, but he felt determined, he wouldn’t be left behind. "Okay, I'll clean the beach in no time and be ready for the exam!" He takes the papers, reading through them, he sees that every day is planned, but one thing he doesn't understand is why there's quirk training time. "All Might, why is quirk training time on it? You’re passing your quirk to me already?"

"No, my boy, this is for training your quirk."

"But I don't-never mind,” Izuku stopped trying to correct All Might, it’s not like he would accept any other answer than a quirk, “so I have to train with my Keyblade and my body.” Izuku went back to hulling the trash, “Okay so I better get started" After a few hours he got a good space cleaned so he could practice.

Summoning his Keyblade he took on a stance, right leg back, body slightly turned, knees a little bent, holding his weapon with the two hands pointing forward. Taking some basic swings, he got the feeling that he’s done something like this before-

* * *

_"Giving up already?"_

_"Hey, look who's winning!"_

_"Come on S̸̭͇̲͇ō̸̡̳̭͚͘ȑ̴͉͂̃͝a̷͇̝̔̏̌̕, let's show him!"_

* * *

Another flash, another piece that Izuku could barely understand. His  
mind can't remember, but his heart can, in a second Izuku is performing a series of strikes that send a pile of garbage flying.

Taking deep breaths to calm down, he hears the sound of clapping.

"Impressive Young Midoriya, if you keep that up your Keyblade quirk will be a force to behold!" All Might said, approaching the boy.

"That’s not it's name"

"What?"

"It is a Keyblade, but it has a name."

"Well, then what is it?" 

Izuku looked at the Keyblade, he felt a smile crawl onto his face, he lifted the Keyblade up towards the sky, "Heroes Rising." At the sound of its name the Keyblade glinted, although neither could tell if it was from the sun.

All Might gives one of his signature laughs, "That is a great name my boy, now I think that is enough for today." 

Izuku realized that the sun is already setting. Had he really been out all day already?

He runs back home, entering the apartment he sees his mother sitting on the couch, "Hey mom," he smiled at her, since the day he got his Keyblade Izuku felt more and more relaxed in conversations, while before he could barely speak a sentence without stuttering, now he can talk to people relatively normally.

"Izuku, we have to talk" Inko says, doing her best to look imposing, a difficult task when she is shorter than Izuku, and her chubby complexion and kind face make her look absolutely not threatening.

Izuku frowned, what did she need to say that was so serious? Izuku sits next to her, "Sure mom, what’s wrong?" He places a hand over hers, "If this is about my training to enter UA, don't worry, I got some help so I won't hurt myself"

"What-no, it’s not about that, I'm happy that you’re putting so much effort to go to the school you want, what I want to talk about is-" Inko's voice fails and tears start to flow down her face.   
Izuku quickly hugs her, "Mom it’s okay, you don't have to talk if you don't want to. I doubt whatever it is it can’t be that important."

Inko gently pushed her son a little, "No, you deserve to know," taking a deep breath she looks Izuku in the eye, "Izuku you’re adopted".

Izuku felt his entire world freeze, he had been expecting many upsetting things but of all the things that she could have said, Izuku was not expecting this, "W-WHAT?! But how-when-why?" Izuku couldn't even talk, the only person he had as family since ever was saying that they weren't related, that was impossible-

* * *

_"Let's go boys, I'll take you to the play island today"_

_"Thanks dad!"_

_"Take care and come back before dinner"_

* * *

Izuku holds his aching head, he knew them, a man with spiky brunette hair and blue eyes, and a woman with green hair and eyes that looked like him and his 'mother', Izuku in his heart knew them, but that wasn't important right now, the chubby woman crying and apologizing in front of him was.

Putting his hands on her shoulders, Izuku gently shook her, he felt tears fighting to fall out, but he kept them at bay, "Mom, look at me, it doesn't matter, you raised and loved me when no one else would, you stayed with me, you’re my mother, okay?" He smiled at her, hoping to comfort her.

"IZUKUUUUU!" Inko hugs him while liters of tears falls from her eyes, "I'm sorry for not telling you, I'm sorry for not supporting your dream, but now I’ll be there for you, I promise!"

* * *

_"No matter what we will always be there for each other, it's a promise!"_

_"Yeah! Thanks S̸̭͇̲͇ō̸̡̳̭͚͘ȑ̴͉͂̃͝a̷͇̝̔̏̌̕"_

* * *

Izuku hugs her back with a tearful smile, "I know you will.” Making his mind, Izuku ended the hug, "There's something that I have to tell you too."

He told his mother about the dreams he was having, his Keyblade, the strange visions. Everything except the entire meeting with All Might since that wasn’t only his secret to tell.

Inko listened, when he showed his Keyblade she was elated, her baby boy could finally follow his dreams, but at the same time it worried her of what could happen to him, "It’s getting late and you have to wake up early tomorrow, so go to bed Izuku".

"Okay…” Izuku stopped by his bedroom door, he had one more thing to say before turning in for the night, “and mom, thank you, for everything." He didn’t wait for a response closing the door behind him.

"No, thank you Izuku, for being my light when I needed it the most," Inko whispered, happy tears in her eyes.

* * *

_"Where are we?"_

_"Lookout!"_

_"I'm Goofy"_

_"Donald Duck"_

_"My name's Izuku"_

_"And I'm S̸̭͇̲͇ō̸̡̳̭͚͘ȑ̴͉͂̃͝a̷͇̝̔̏̌̕"_

_"Let's go find our friends, together!"_

* * *

Izuku slowly gets up, putting a hand on his chest, he softly whispers, "Together, right? Donald, Goofy." He quickly gets ready for the day, leaving his house. Running to Dagobah beach, he sees all the garbage he has to clean, "I have ten months to clean all this, so it's better get started!" With a determined look, Izuku starts his training.

* * *

_"I am late, I am late! The queen will have my head!"_

_"This place doesn't make any sense!"_

_"Alice is gone!"_

* * *

Izuku pushes a fridge up the stairs, putting it on a truck, All Might is at the side coaching him. He also makes sure that no accidents happen, since fridges can be dangerous when they fall on people.

* * *

_"APE, A-P-E"_

_"We found the slides!"_

_"Another Keyhole..."_

* * *

Izuku strikes a washing machine with his Keyblade sending it flying, he jumps cutting it clean in half.

* * *

_"Let's fight in the games!"_

_"I'll take one head, you take the other!"_

_"I name you, junior heroes."_

* * *

Izuku runs laps on the sand with All Might in his buff form on his back.

* * *

_"We will help you find Jasmine"_

_"PHENOMENAL COSMIC POWERS!, inside a tiny little lamp"_

_"Genie, you are free!"_

* * *

Izuku's jumps from one pile of garbage to another, he summons his Keyblade, points it up, "Thunder!" the tip of the weapon glows yellow. Lightning shoots out of the weapon before he hits the ground.

* * *

_"WHOA, we’re fish people now!"_

_"Keyblade wielders shouldn't interfere with other worlds."_

_"Interfering in things that don't concern us is what it means to be a hero!"_

* * *

Izuku in his bedroom does push ups while reading a book of hero law. He is keeping up with his studies so he can pass the written part of the exam.

* * *

_"I have to admit, these are some cool monster costumes."_

_"Come on guys, I want to see the Heartless dancing!"_

_"Happy Halloween!"_

* * *

All Might throws cans up at the beach, Izuku threw his Keyblade at them, it spins like a buzzsaw destroying the cans before going back to his hand.

* * *

_"That giant whale ate us!"_

_"Pinocchio! Wait up!"_

_"R̵̰̉̓i̸̟͋̋k̸̰͑͂ü̸̠̒!"_

* * *

Izuku pushed All Might's truck down the road, in the driver seat the hero embarrassingly looked at the empty gas meter.

* * *

_"K̷̼̗̒̓ā̷̜̞̑i̶̙̊̌r̶̠̰̾i̷̗̓!"_

_"You brats are going to walk the plank!"_

_"We flew! No one will believe it hehe"_

* * *

Izuku jumps high in the air before pointing his Keyblade down, diving in a trash pile and destroying it.

* * *

_"S̵͚͒̕ọ̸̱͐͋r̷̛̼͎͆ą̶̮͑͑ don't! That's gotta be another way!"_

_"Ansem!"_

_"Kingdom Hearts is light!"_

* * *

All Might walked to the beach, his successor was doing excellent, the boy has come a long way in just ten months. What before was a scrawny fanboy, now is a young man ready to begin his journey as a hero.

Finally arriving at the beach, Toshinori saw something incredible, "Oh my...my... **GOODNESS!!!** " The WHOLE beach was clean, spotless. On the sidewalk was a mountain of trash, and sitting on top of it watching the setting sun was Izuku, he was shirtless and covered in dirt, but even it couldn't hide his now muscular body.

 **"YOU NEVER STOP TO AMAZE ME, MY BOY! YOU EVEN CLEANED OUTSIDE THE AREA I MARKED, AND WITH A DAY TO SPARE!"** Izuku jump off the pile and land in front of All Might, **"NOW YOUNG MIDORIYA, I BELIEVE IT IS TIME"** The hero raise his hand to his head and take one hair, **"SOMEONE ONCE TOLD ME, THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LUCK AND HARD WORK IS THAT ONE IS A CHANCE, THE OTHER IS A REWARD, THIS IS YOUR REWARD!".**

Izuku, even with tears threatening to spill, had a smile as brilliant as his mentor. This was it, the moment he worked ten months for, nothing could ruin this for him.

 **"EAT THIS!"** All Might shouted, offering his hair.

"Wait, what?" This isn’t what Izuku was expecting.

**“WELL, TO RECEIVE ONE FOR ALL YOU NEED TO CONSUME SOME OF MY DNA, AND THIS IS THE LEAST AWKWARD WAY!”**

Izuku takes the hair, but his face clearly had doubt. He looked at the hair, steeling himself, “It can’t be that bad.” It was, the sensation of the hair going down his throat that almost made him puke, but he powered through it. Still coughing a little he turns to All Might, “I did it, but I don’t feel any different?”

**“YOU STILL HAVE TO DIGEST IT, SO GO HOME AND HAVE A GOOD NIGHT OF SLEEP AND TOMORROW ONE FOR ALL WILL BE YOURS! BUT REMEMBER THAT YOU’LL HAVE TO ADAPT TO IT, SO BE CAREFUL!”**

Izuku says goodbye to All Might and starts walking home, on the way he takes a notebook from...somewhere, on it is written ‘Dream Journal Volume I’. Ever since the dreams and visions started he kept track of them. “So we beat Ansem in the end...somehow? and closed Kingdom Hearts...Somehow? Urgh, I can’t remember, much of this part had so many pieces missing” Izuku complained frustrated, some dreams were relatively complete and he could understand, others were just random bits and pieces.

Izuku ended his notes before entering his house, after a quick dinner with his mother, he turned in for the night.

* * *

Izuku slowly opened his eyes, looking around he saw himself back on the pillar surrounded by darkness. On the edge floated eight orbs of light, each one a different color. Something in Izuku told him that they shouldn’t be there, but they weren’t a threat either. They approached Izuku, with each one entering his chest, one by one.

The final one floated in place, “Don't be afraid, because no matter what, we will always be with you.”

* * *

Izuku rose from his bed and stretched, the sun was rising, its light illuminating the bedroom, “It’s today!” jumping out of bed Izuku rushed to prepare for the exam. Taking a shower, eating a small breakfast and putting on his school uniform and crossed belts so fast, that when his mother woke he was already at the door.

“Izuku wait!” Turning around, Izuku saw his mother smiling with small tears in her eyes, “I just want you to know that don’t matter what happens today, I’m proud of you.”

A warm feeling filled his chest, Izuku returned the smile. “I know, don’t worry I’ll be okay.” Quickly putting on his signature red shoes he gets up and leaves the house. 

One short train ride later.

Izuku stands in front of the massive gates of UA, the cherry blossoms blooming and the main building at the distance makes for one breathtaking view, “Out of my way!” 

It’s a shame some people don’t know how to appreciate it.

Izuku looked over his shoulder, seeing a familiar blonde, “Hi, Kacchan!” After the Sludge Villain incident, Katsuki had been on almost civil terms towards Izuku at least for him.

“Move it, shithead!” 

Almost.

Passing ahead Bakugou shouted over his shoulder, “Don’t go dying on the starting line Deku!” 

Hearing it Izuku smiled, ‘He really cares, in his own weird way’ With renewed vigor Izuku started to walk to the building...only to trip in a loose brick on the road.

‘Sorry Kacchan, but I won’t die in the start line, I’LL DIE RIGHT NOW’ Izuku panicked, trying to put his arms in front of him to break his fall. But the impact never came, looking down he saw he was floating.

“Sorry about using my quirk without asking, but falling on an exam is bad luck” A voice said from above Izuku before someone helped him stand, turning to his savior, he saw a girl his age, she has brown eyes and hair, two bangs framed her face, that have two permanent blush marks in the cheeks.

Izuku cheeks reddened in a slight blush, as he nervously scratched his neck, “Thanks for the save, I would have died from embarrassment, are you here to take the exam?” 

“It was nothing and yes I’m here for the exam” The girl replied with a smile.

“Well, we better get going then, my name’s Izuku, Midoriya Izuku” They started to walk again. Izuku and the girl match their paces to keep talking, “I’m Uraraka Ochaco, it’s nice to meet you Midoriya-san.” They keep with some simple talk along the way before parting ways to take the written portion of the exam.

Some hours later, the students were all in a huge auditorium waiting for the instructor, Izuku was seated beside Katsuki, the explosive boy gave him a small nod that could be measured in nanometers. Not long after, Present Mic, the pro hero and teacher began explaining the physical part of the exam.

"HEY LISTENERS!!! I KNOW THAT YOU ALL ARE HYPED TO THE PRACTICAL PART, SO CAN I GET A HEY!!!" The hero only got silence, Izuku was sure that every person in the auditorium was too nervous to even speak. Looking around he saw everyone with serious faces, the tension was getting to him too. Poor teacher, he was just trying to lighten the mood.

Present Mic was unfettered though, "KEEPING IT MELLOW HUM? OKAY SO I'LL GO STRAIGHT TO BUSINESS THEN!" The hero made a short introduction of the three types of robots and the point system. A student interrupted him to ask about the fourth type, but it is just an obstacle to avoid. So why is Izuku having a really bad feeling about it?

"NOW I'LL LEAVE YOU WITH THE SCHOOL MOTTO, AS GENERAL NAPOLEON BONAPARTE ONCE SAID 'A HERO IS ONE THAT OVERCOME LIFE'S MISFORTUNES', GO BEYOND PLUS ULTRA!".

After the speech the applicants were sent to change into more comfortable clothes. Izuku changed to some old black pants, and an All Might hoodie, but kept the belts and shoes.

Katsuki and Izuku were in different battle centers so they parted ways after changing. As Izuku entered the bus, he saw a familiar brunette, “Uraraka-san!”   
The girl in question waved and offered the open seat beside her, “Midoriya-san it’s good to see you, lucky there was a spot open, the bus got full really fast.”

Sitting beside her Izuku looked around and saw that there were only a couple seats free, “Whoa, everyone sure is eager to begin.”

“Well yeah, we are trying to get on UA! I just hope we pass” Ochaco bubbly attitude turned grim. 

The change didn’t escape Izuku’s notice, “Uraraka-san is something wrong?”

“Is just that... I’m afraid I won’t pass, there are so many people, and my quirk isn’t good for combat” Ochaco replied, with a downcast look.

“Hey don’t say that! Your quirk is amazing, and if you’re so worried then we can do the exam together!” Izuku’s unwavering determination shocked Ochaco, but not so much as his offer, “Would you do the exam with me? You would do that? Aren't we competing for a spot?”

“Well sure we’re competing, but there’s nothing in the rules that says we can’t do the exam together. We can help each other out, I mean isn’t that what friends are for?”

* * *

_“Would you protect something that doesn't really exist?”_

_“Of course, isn't that what friends are for?”_

* * *

The vision barely lasted a second, but the smiling blond girl in his vision is replaced with Ochaco smiling just as bright, “Okay, let's do this together!”

The rest of the short bus trip was spent planning how to match their strengths, some minutes later they disembarked, and were greeted by giant metal doors. “I’ll give an eight out of ten” Izuku commented, absentmindedly.

“What?” Ochaco tilted her head confused, wondering what her new friend was talking about.

“The doors, I’ve seen bigger” Izuku replied pointing at it. 

Ochaco laughed, “Why would someone need even bigger doors?”.

“I don’t know, it's not like giants lived there” Izuku shrugged with a small smile, which only made the girl laugh more. A hand landed on his shoulder suddenly, turning back he was face to face with the student that interrupted the presentation, he was taller than them, had dark blue hair and eyes of a lighter blue, and his calves looked like car exhaust pipes. 

“If you won't take this exam seriously, then leave, this is not a place for fraternization.”

“Hey! We are taking this seriously, and talking is better than being nervous!” Ochaco tried to defend them, but Izuku could feel that the other boy was just as nervous as she was, so in turn he placed a hand on his shoulder, “Hey, don’t worry, just do your best and I’m sure you’ll do just fine.” 

The gesture surprised the other two, but the taller boy felt reassured, so even with his first assumptions he gave a perfect ninety degree bow in thanks. Before anything else could be said they heard the voice of Present Mic, “START!”,

Izuku quickly grabbed a hold on Ochaco's and the boy's hands and started to run, pulling the two with him.

“Wait, there was no countdown” the still unnamed boy cried, “We must not be disrespectful to our fellow test takers by dashing off before the proper protocol has been met!”

“WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? THERE’S NO COUNTDOWNS IN REAL LIFE, GO GO GO!”.

The applicants who stayed behind quickly started running, but the trio already passed the gates. Izuku saw a mob of robots ahead, letting go of the other two hands, he summoned his Keyblade and threw it towards the robots. The weapon spined like a buzzsaw cutting three one pointers in half before hitting a three pointer, throwing it off balance, “Come on, we have a test to pass!” Izuku said, retrieving his Keyblade in a flash of sparks.

While the hero hopefuls fought, in one room with a long table and various monitors, the members of the teaching body of UA discussed the ongoing exam, a small figure sat at the head of the table. That was Nezu, the principal of UA sipping some tea, “The exam this year is doing well, we can perceive some individuals with fine qualities for hero work…”

“The ability to gather information…” One monitor held a tall figure with six arms on the top of a building, the tip of his arms had extra eyes and ears.

“A calm mind in the face of danger…” Another monitor had a blond boy that seemed to sparkle calmly destroying robots with a laser fired from his navel.

“Speed to breeze through obstacles…” The boy with exhaust pipes in the calves rapidly maneuvered and destroyed robots in another screen.

“Raw destructive power…” Bakugou was seen on top of a smoking pile of destroyed robots in another one.

“But the most rare in today's society, is the capability of foregone personal success and work with others to achieve a common goal” Nezu smiled while looking at one screen where Izuku was distracting robots so Ochaco could use her quirk on them.

“And to think a Keyblade wielder would come to my school, this will be one interesing year,” Nezu's voice was so low that no one heared it, no one except one man in a sleeping bag at the corner of the room.  
  
“Well I think it is time to give our potential students a real challenge,” Nezu nodded towards another figure. That person opened a case with a big red button and promptly pressed it.

A couple minutes early

Izuku and Ochaco fought five one pointers, with a Blizzard spell Izuku froze one of them, letting the others that charged behind crash into it. Ochaco then made all of them float with her quirk before jumping back, letting Izuku send the robots flying upwards with a couple strikes from his Keyblade, she pressed the small pads in the tips of her fingers together, releasing her quirk, making the robots fall from six stories high, to the ground below.

“And that makes fifty each!” Izuku shouted with a fistpump. Ochaco was about to reply when the ground started to shake. Suddenly one building next to them exploded, from inside a massive robot came out.

Ochaco saw a piece of rubble fall their way, “Midoriya, look out!” She only had enough time to jump and push Izuku out of the crash zone.

BAMG!

Izuku looked up from the ground where he landed, only to see a pile of rocks.

* * *

_“Look out!”_

_“Goofy, no!”_

_“This isn’t happening, it can’t be happening”_

* * *

With a desperate look, Izuku rushed to where he last saw Ochaco, “Uraraka! Where are you! Please say something!” His heart fell at each second of silence.

“Midoriya, I’m here!” Came the weak voice from the pile of ruble, but to Izuku it was the best sound in the world, quickly approaching the place from where he thought the voice came he found Ochaco below one of the bigger rocks. Her leg was stuck and she was in a position where she couldn’t use her quirk in it.

Izuku needed very little prompting, he only saw his friend in need of help and he wanted them to be okay, “Wait just a second I’ll get you out of there!” He grasped the larger rubble in an attempt to get her out.

“No, you have to run!” 

“What!” 

“Look behind you” Izuku did as she said, seeing the massive figure of the zero pointer towering over them. He felt like he was back at that fateful night, with another being looming over him and someone else, a pair of beedy yellow eyes in the place of red lenses, pure darkness in the place of metal. Looking back at the terrified face of his friend, he knew what he had to do.

As the metal colossus stretched his hand to end his victims. Izuku jumped on it, running up the arm of the giant.

In the observation room a skeletal figure stood up, All Might thought that after so many close encounters with death he wasn't easily scared, but when his successor was almost buried by a mountain of debris he almost coughed blood. But now, seeing that flame in the boy’s eyes, All Might couldn’t help the smile that came back at full force, watching the heroic display he couldn’t help but stand and say the same words spoken to him so many years ago, “The most important quality of a hero, self sacrifice, putting oneself into danger to keep another safe is the true essence of a hero!”.

Izuku ran toward the head of the metal behemoth with his heart burning, but that was not the only thing that answered his heroic call in him, a power passed from generations flowed through him.

With a final jump that got him above the head of his enemy, the power of One For All flowed from his arms to his Keyblade, from it a giant blade of light formed. At that moment the words from Izuku’s mentor once again passed through his mind.

* * *

_"To use the power of One For All…"_

_"Clench your buttcheeks…"_

_"AND SHOUT FROM THE BOTTOM OF YOUR HEART"_

* * *

"SMAAAASSSSSSHHHHHHHHH!"

Izuku brought the light blade down, tearing the robot's head in half, but it didn’t stop, the blade kept going until it sliced the zero pointer clearly in half all the way down.

In the observation room almost everyone cheered, who wouldn’t with such display, not just of power, but of heroism. Nezu softly clapped, he knew that someone chosen by a Keyblade would not do any less, especially in a situation where lives were at risk (even if the security protocols would have stopped the robot before anything serious could happen).

The only person not showing any type of reaction was the man in the sleeping bag, because he paid attention to what that reckless stunt caused.

Izuku landed on the ground hard, his arms were heavily bruised, he was pretty sure his left one was broken, the blade of light dissipated in tiny glowing specks. 

Looking up, Izuku saw the two halves of the robot falling backwards, with a bang the giant pieces of metal crashed to the ground, but Izuku was already running back to Ochaco, he barely heard Present Mic announcing the end of the exam.

“Uraraka are you hurt?”.

“Me? Midoriya look at your arms! You have to go find help!” Ochaco was shocked and amazed, this boy who she barely knew had done so much for her, and even while hurt he was still worried about her. With watering eyes she said, “don’t worry about me, you’re hurt, just leave me here and go. The exam's over.”

“Sorry, I can’t do that, I can’t simply leave my friend behind.” Izuku, even with the state that his arms were, he still tried to lift the rubble pinning Ochaco. It was the scene that the tall boy with engine calfs found.

Running towards the scene he placed his hands under the rubble, “Let me help you.” They lifted the debris enough for Ochaco to crawl out. When she was safe, Izuku felt the strength leave his legs, but the other boy caught him before he could fall.

“Thank You... I don’t think we got your name yet”

“Ah yes, my name is Iida Tenya, it is a pleasure to meet you”

“I’m Izuku, Midoriya Izuku, and my friend here is Uraraka Ochaco. Thanks for lending a hand, mine got a little busted wrecking that robot.” Izuku, now seated in the ground beside Ochaco, pointing to the pile of smoking metal with his relatively good arm.

“Yes that was impressive, but it looks like there is a serious drawn back, but even then you did the best in that situation”

“I just did what any hero and friend would have, after all it was only the right thing to do.'' Izuku smiled at Tenya and Ochaco, the two looked at Izuku and couldn’t help but smile themselves.

“Oh dearie, your own quirk did that to you?” an aged voice said, the three turned and saw an old woman in a hero costume and a giant needle she used as a cane.

“Recovery Girl! The youthful heroine, with one of the best healing quirks ever registered, can you please give me one autograph” Izuku entered his hero fanboy mode and pulled a notebook from...somewhere. 

“Calm down now dearie, you don’t want to make your injuries worse” Activating her quirk, Recovery Girl’s limbs extended, and with a kiss in the forehead of the three teens, she healed them with a green light.

“Huh, it’s almost like a Curaga spell” Izuku mumbled, checking his arms, they both completely healed, but he started to feel sluggish, “Now you three get going, the results will be sent soon, so go home and have some rest”.

“That was fun don’t you think?” Izuku said, as they headed towards the buses.

“How can you call that fun! We almost died!”

“Come on Ochaco it wasn’t that bad, and Tenya even helped us in the end.” Izuku commented while walking back to the bus, not noticing the surprised faces of his companions.

“Midoriya-san, it is inappropriate to call us with such familiarity when we’ve barely met!” Tenya shouted while doing hand chops in the air.

“But, we’re friends aren’t we? There’s no problem in calling you by your first names then.” Izuku replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world, once more overlooking the shock of the other two. It was surprising that he already considered them friends. 

In the end Ochaco smiled, “You’re right Izuku-kun, we beat the exam together, and now we’ll go to UA, so we can all be friends, right Tenya-kun”.

To say that the young speedster was surprised wouldn’t be enough, but seeing the happy and kind smiles directed to him, even with his formal upbringing, he saw himself wanting to agree with them, “I suppose you are right, then why not trade numbers and staying in contact, then we can get to know each other better”.

And that is how the day ended for our young Keyblade wielder, a challenge surpassed, new friends, and his dreams closer than ever. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: The hero and the princess**

_“Seven pure lights”_

_“Hearts untouched by darkness”_

_“They are known as the Princesses of Heart”_

* * *

“Izuku honey, are you okay?” Inko’s voice brought Izuku back to reality, “Another one?”

He nodded, “Yeah, but that one was a lot clearer, I’m gonna note it down.” Getting up from the table where they were having dinner, Izuku made his way to his room to grab a notebook.

Making a quick entry about the vision, he stared at the words. He didn't know why, but the name ‘Princess of Heart’ made his heart ache, like he should know it, like there was something really important about it. Shaking his head, Izuku made his way back to the table.

“Something wrong?”

“What?”

“You’re making that face you do when something is wrong sweetie.”

Izuku scratched his head, he was really that obvious, “It’s just that, in the last vision, there was this name I think I should know, but I only draw blanks whenever I think about it.”

“It must be the nerves, you took the exam yesterday after all, why don’t you go for a walk after you finish eating? It’ll help clear your mind a little.” Inko offered, from what her son told her about the exam, he knew how to protect himself.

“You’re right, I promise I’ll be back before it gets too late.” Izuku said, standing up from his seat.

“Okay, but put a coat on mister! It’s getting cold” Inko said, using her concerned mother's voice.

“Okay, okay, I will,” It’s super effective.

After dinner, Izuku changed into a dark green hoodie, black trousers and crossed belts with his red shoes. Saying goodbye to his mother, he leaves the house. Maybe a walk really would take his mind off the strange visions and mysterious name.

On the street, Izuku walks without any clear direction, letting his legs carry him. Putting his hood up (his mother was right, It was cold) he let his mind wander, he thought about the exam and his new friends, the first time he used One For All and the drawbacks (read broken bones), All Might still not contacting him. But principally how the flashbacks that he was having don’t make sense, they weren't in order, pieces are missing, and it doesn't matter how hard he tries he couldn’t help but think he was forgetting certain people.

Izuku was so lost in his thoughts he hadn’t realized he was in the middle of the city and it was almost 10 p.m. The street was starting to get deserted, deciding to head back he turned back, making his way back.

Suddenly, a tiny figure runs out from a side alley and bumping into Izuku’s leg, looking down he saw the figure was a little girl, no older than 6, she had white hair and red eyes, a pale yellow horn in the right side of her head, wearing a ragged white dress.

Izuku kneeled down, “Hey, you okay?” He gently takes her hands helping her stand, Izuku sees the bandages covering her limbs, but what drew his attention was the fear in her eyes, “Hey, calm down, I’m not going to hurt you, where are your parents? I can help you find them.” Still kneeling on her level he places his hands on her shoulders and gives her a kind smile.  
  
The girl stared at him, little by little her panicked expression started to calm down, she opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by a figure exiting the same alley.

“Eri come back,” They said, wearing a white cloak and some type of bird mask. Their voice makes the girl start to tremble, Izuku noticed it, he slowly stood placing himself in front of the girl.

“Who are you?” Izuku asked, he didn’t like the man, something felt off about him. If he had to describe it Izuku would say that the masked man was up to no good. There is a darkness coming off the man in waves, if the girl went to him, Izuku had no doubt there would be consequences.

“I’m her father, what are you doing with her?” The man said, committing to the fasaud, he motions Eri to come to him, “Eri let’s go.”

Eri grabbed Izuku’s legs, trying to hide behind him, Izuku felt his heart burn at the fear in her eyes, trembling on her small form. This wasn’t a child running away from a parent for a silly reason. Eri was terrified of the man in front of her. 

Izuku glared, in a green flash his Keyblade manifested in his hand seemingly on it’s own “She doesn't want to go with you. Get lost!”

The man narrowed his eyes, staring at the teen in front of him, “Are you trying to kidnap my daughter?” He slowly raised his hand for his back, reaching for something.

Izuku took his stance, making sure to cover Eri with his body, “Cut the act, she’s afraid of you, so if you want her, you’ll have to pass through me first!”

“Well have it your way,” Confirming the street was empty, the man pulled a gun he kept hidden, opening fire, Izuku in his defensive stance, felt the bullets hitting the Keyblade.

Eri stares terrified, the person she bumped into was now protecting her, he was kind to her, even when no one else was, even with her curse. She didn’t want to see him die, her grip tightened causing Izuku to look towards, “Please, leave me, you’ll die, just go.” She said, tears welling in her eyes, she didn’t think herself worth all the trouble.

Izuku's eyes widened, but he gave her a gentle smile aimed at her, “Nope, I have to save you, because…” Heroes Rising glowed, Izuku opened his arms, a shockwave formed, hitting the man, throwing him off balance and back into the alley, “That’s what heroes do!”

Pointing the tip of the blade to the ground in front of his enemy, Izuku released a Blizzard spell making a small ice wall, trapping the man in the alley. Scooping Eri in his left arm, Izuku ran, leaving the man behind. 

After some time, and lots of curves, Izuku saw his neighborhood. Slowing down he looks at the girl that was holding onto him like a lifeline, “Hey, it’s okay now, we’re safe.”

The little girl looked around, they were somewhere different, the man was nowhere in sight. She looked at her savior, noticing his hood had fallen down, exposing his face. Meeting his eyes, for the first time Eri felt safe in the presence of someone else.

“Hey, do you have somewhere to go?” Izuku was capable of connecting the dots, a little girl in bandages running from a villain, she probably was taken away from her family and didn't know how to get home. Something felt familiar about that, but she needed help, and he’s here to help her.

“No,” Eri couldn’t understand why this person helped her. In the end he would get hurt, the bird people would find her, they always did, and then they'd kill him. She had to go, so why couldn't she? Why did her arms keep holding onto him?

“Well then, why don’t you go home with me then? You can spend the night there and tomorrow we can get help to get you back to your family.”

“I don’t have….”

“What?”

“I don’t have a family”

“Oh…” That was unfortunate, but that didn’t mean he still couldn’t help her. ”Then you can stay with me and my family, as long as you like, okay?”

Eri shyly nodded, “Okay...”

“I don’t think I told you my name huh, I’m Midoriya Izuku.”

“I’m Eri...”

“Nice to meet you Eri” Izuku gave her his best smile, Eri tried to do the same, but she couldn’t, the shadow looming over her heart wouldn't let her. 

Izuku expected as much, the child’s bright light was buried below a great darkness, it felt wrong. While he carried Eri to his apartment, already on sight, he promised that he would free her heart. It’ll take a lot of faith, trust, and work, but he felt that it would be worth it in the end, to see this little girl smile.

After a short walk, they arrived at the Midoriya residence.

“Mom, I’m home!” Izuku called out, closing the door behind him.

“Izuku! I was getting worried-” Inko froze seeing the child in her son’s arms, various thoughts passed her mind, but seeing the state of the girl’s clothes and bandages, the only one left was her protective mother ones, “You have a lot to explain mister, but now come here, take her to the bathroom while I grab some clean clothes.”

The no-nonsense tone was enough to let Izuku know how serious his mother is, with a quick nod he carries the child who is doing her best to hide in his chest to the bathroom.

Placing Eri on the ground, Izuku finally gets a good look on the girl, her battered dress is actually a hospital gown, the bandages on her limbs are dirty, like they were reused, and below them, fresh wounds still dripped with blood. That shocked Izuku, Eri was probably in a lot of pain having to move with those, Izuku wouldn't let that continue, standing up, Izuku took a step back, Eri’s eyes locked in his figure, with curiosity and fear shining in them.

“Come on you’ve seen it done a million times.” Izuku thought of the visions of strangers with similar powers to himself. Although there was one specific instance he was focusing on, summoning his Keyblade, Izuku held it with two hands. He closed his eyes focusing on the feeling of Recovery Girl’s quirk. The feeling of freshness and renewal, the tip of the Keyblade glowed a soft green light, “Cure.” 

Eri is enveloped by green light, it’s nothing like she has ever felt before.

“Feeling better now Eri?” Izuku asked, dismissing his weapon. He kneels down gently holding her bandaged hands, he unwraps the old bandages being sure to check each limb on the child. Scar still littered the little girl, but the most recent wounds had healed with no trouble.“Here, better now.”

Eri stares starstruck, what a wonderful power, there are no wounds and the pain is all gone, it’s a feeling she couldn’t remember ever having. “Is that your power?”.

“Huh, no that’s just some healing magic.”

“Magic?” Eri asked, tilting her head. 

“Yeah, my Keyblade lets me use magic, it’s different from quirks, while the power of quirks come from our bodies, magic comes from the heart.” Izuku places a hand over his chest, raising the other, letting tiny lights dance on it.

Eri took a breath, a power so beautiful, she couldn’t help, but want to do it too. “Can I do magic too?” She desperately hoped that maybe there was more to her than her horrible curse.

Izuku smiled, “Of course, anyone can.”

“Can you teach me?”

Looking at those red eyes full of hope, Izuku felt his heart melting, even then though he couldn’t just say yes, he wasn’t ready to teach-

* * *

_“I name you, Keyblade Masters”_

_“I told you, you passed with flying colors”_

_“It is now your duty as Masters to pass forward the legacy of the Keyblade”_

* * *

“Izuku?” Eri said, shaking his arm, she wore a worried look, she was afraid she upset him.

Izuku shook his head, “Huh? Sorry I spaced out a little, but yes I can teach you.”

Eri jumped, “Really?”

“Really, but it’s a great responsibility,” His finger moved towards himself and her, “For both of us.”

“Respo...hum?”

“Well, it’s important, I’ll have to take care of you, and you’ll have to work hard.”

“You’ll take care of me?” Eri couldn’t understand, why would he want to take care of her, she’s cursed, she only would hurt him.

Izuku placed a hand on her head, “Of course I will, if you accept, then I’ll be your Master, so it will be my duty to take care of you.” Izuku gave her a smile, and she felt her heart warming, she could be with her savior, before she could say anything, tears started to fall, she hugged him.

Izuku’s harms flew up, “Woah, Eri calm down, you don’t have to accept if you-” 

“Yes, please, don’t leave me alone,” Eri said between sobs, Izuku felt the pleading in her heart, the fear, the hurt, and the hope. How could he call himself a hero if he didn’t save the little girl crying in his chest. Holding her shoulders, Izuku looked in her eyes.

“Well then, from today on, I’m your Master, and I’ll protect you, I’ll teach you, and I’ll always be by your side, it’s a promise.” Izuku offered Eri his pinky finger, she stared at it for a second, before slowly raising her hand and enveloping his finger with hers. She didn’t know why, but it felt right.

Inko is at the door, watching that beautiful moment (and taking some pictures), she had the impression that the story was a little more complicated than she first assumed, but is certain that Izuku would keep the promise he just made.

“Well Izuku, while I give this little girl a bath, you’re going to explain what happened.” Inko said, starting the shower, at first the child didn’t want to leave Izuku’s side, but after reassuring her he would be at the other side of the door waiting for her she agreed.

Inko felt like she was back in the past. During the time when she had to help Izuku to shower, Eri felt the same care that Izuku had with her from the woman. In the end Eri looked like a different person, her white hair was shining, she looked adorable in Izuku’s old clothes, a simple green shirt that was a bit too big for her and blue pants.  
Leaving the bathroom, they are greeted by a delicious smell. 

In the kitchen, Izuku is cooking, “Hey! I thought Eri may be hungry so give me a second and I’ll finish it up for you.”

Inko starred, she never would have thought of her son proficient in the culinary arts. “Wow Izuku, when did you learn how to cook?”

Izuku wore a look on his face, he couldn’t clearly remember where or who taught him, but something told him that they were a friend. Although he did distinctly remember a dream about a rat who could cook. “A friend taught me.” Izuku put a bow of katsudon on the table, “Here Eri, dig in!”.

Eri is already salivating from the smell, seeing the steaming bowl let her stomach rumbling, with the green light given, she’s seated on the table and eating, with her hands.

“Hey, Eri, use the utensils.” Izuku's only answer is a tilt of the head and bloated cheeks, “You don’t know how to use them, or what they are, right?”   
Eri shook her head. 

“Okay, then I’ll teach you how to eat with them” Izuku sighed, seated at Eri’s side, taking the utensils and showing her how to use them.

After a couple of tries Eri got the hang of it, with some little mishaps along the way. Inko looked at that familiar scene, remembering when she was helping the boy after finding him, that’s when she realizes she’s forgetting something.

“Izuku, I think it’s time for that explanation.”

After a quick retelling of the events, Inko was equal parts proud and worried.

“Izuku, that was dangerous!”

“I know mom, but I had to do something, don’t worry I don’t think that was the first time someone shot at me.”

“WHAT?!”

“Okay, I shouldn’t have said that.” Izuku said, the weight of the words catching up to him.

“We will talk about this later, now we have to decide what to do with Eri.” This is especially important, this little girl needs help.

“I’ll take care of her” Izuku's reply was instantaneous, he made a promise after all.

“Izuku this is serious, you can’t just simply say that, we should go to the police.”

“Mom, I said I’ll take care of her and I will, I gave my word as a Keyblade Master.”

“A what?” Inko knew about the matters related to the Keyblade, or at least what Izuku had told her, and even it being a little hard to believe, the way his eyes sparkled when they talked showed he was being honest. Whenever he talked about his visions and dreams, there was almost something about the way he talked about them that told her they might just be real, but that’s ridiculous. Gummi ships? Anthropomorphic dogs and ducks? Magic? It’s all too unbelievable, Izuku never gave an indication that her skepticism bothered him, in fact he didn’t really seem to care. But this is the first time she heard something about him being a Master, whatever that meant.

“A Keyblade Master, the point where a wielder is ready to pass on the legacy of the Keyblade and teach the new wielders”

“So you're telling me you can pass it to others?” Quirks don’t pass on to each other, “that someone passed it to you?”

* * *

_“Why did you pass the Keyblade to me?”_

_“That day on the beach, I felt the light in your heart, so I decided to follow mine and give you the chance to follow yours.”_

_“Haha, thanks Aqua.”_

* * *

“Izuku, are you okay?” The worry in his mother’s voice brought Izuku’s attention back to reality, tears escaping his eyes.

“Aqua.”

“What? Honey, you had another one?” Inko asked, worried. They seem to be happening more frequently as of late it seemed. 

“Yes, Aqua was telling me why she gave me the Keyblade, she said that it was the chance that I needed to follow my dreams, she believed in me.” Izuku's absentminded response almost brought Inko to shed tears too. How she regretted the words she said to him that night, how she regretted being the first to give up on him. “Even if these visions and dreams aren’t real the feelings I get from them are, which makes them just as real as any memory I have.”

Izuku turned to Inko with a determined teary stare, “Mom, I want to give Eri a chance, I want to give her the hope she needs.” Izuku brings the teary eyes of both to rest in the little girl that stopped eating and was watching with curiosity why the two greenets were crying.

That’s what made Inko understand where all of this was coming from, Izuku may not be blood related to her, but he is her son, and he is about to make the same choice she made on that beach all those years ago.

Inko gave a soft laugh, drying her tears, “Well, I can’t be mad at you that way” standing up, “But I can’t just leave all the responsibility for you either, so WE are going to take care of Eri.” The motherly smile in her face was enough to make the children in the table feel the love radiating from her.

“Now it’s getting late, and I won’t leave my children with a bad night of sleep, you two are going to bed, and tomorrow we will talk about this Master business,” Inko pointed towards Izuku, “and you are going to explain the ‘I don’t think it’s the first time I got shot’ thing” Izuku had the decency to look sheepish, he REALLY shouldn’t have said that.

Inko turned towards Eri, “Now Eri with whom you would like to sleep?” Inko already knew the answer, seeing Eri hug Izuku, asking to stay with him, while her son panicked a little she took the opportunity to get some pictures of her children. HER CHILDREN, Inko never thought she could have children, but these little lights found a way to her life. 

After cleaning the table, Izuku helped Eri get ready for bed, he’s still unsure about them sharing his room. But the puppy eyes of both her and his mother are enough to make him agree.

After a slightly embarrassing tour of his room Izuku tucked Eri in his bed, "Sweet dreams Eri, if you need anything you just have to call, I'll be sleeping on the ground so you don't have to get up if you need me"

When Izuku was about to turn off the lights, Eri holded in him, "NO! Please don't leave, the bird people will come"

"Bird people? You’re talking about that guy in the alley?" Eri nodded, she finally escaped, she was with people who are nice to her, just the thought of going back is enough to make her cry.

"Hey Eri, I promised that I would protect you, and I always keep my promises, so don't worry, if the bird people come I won't let them take you."

"But you can't always be with me" Eri knew that was impossible, but just thinking about being alone in the dark, of Izuku leaving her, tears started to fall.

Izuku hugged the girl, "I can, our hearts are connected, so I'll always be with you." Actions were better than words in a situation like this, so still hugging Eri, Izuku laid on the bed and held her. "So don't worry, because no matter how far away we are from each other, I'll protect you." 

Listening to his words and his heart, Eri relaxed, and not long after she’s asleep, Izuku smiled letting unconsciousness take him.

* * *

Izuku is falling, drifting in the dark, when a light shines in the distance, slowly Izuku opens his eyes and sees the pure light. The moment is short lived, darkness flowed, shooting out, trying to swallow the light.

Izuku hears the cry for help, and his body moves.

Summoning his Keyblade, he points ahead, a Keyhole forms in the void. Heroes Rising glows, from the tip, a beam of light shoots out, hitting the Keyhole.

The void cracks and shattered, colorful patterns forming and dancing. Izuku dived in, becoming a ray of light, like a shooting star, crossing the sky.

* * *

_"The Sleeping Worlds?"_

_"You can use your Keyblades to open the path to them. There, you will prove that you have the Mark of Mastery."_

* * *

"Huh, where am I?" Izuku found himself in a dark tunnel, pipes and wires littering the place. The air gave a heavy feeling.

"NO!" 

Izuku jumped, that was Eri’s voice! He dashed looking around searching for the source of the sound. Taking a turn, he found Eri at the end of the corridor, pressed against a wall, while a dark figure loomed over her.

Before Izuku could fully register the scene, his body moved, jumping on the wall, the moment his feet met concrete, his body was covered in a bright aura.

Flowmotion, his mind remembered. The energy, the freedom, the _flow_. In a second, he covered the distance between them.

"Get away from her!" Izuku shouted, striking the being, his Keyblade manifested, descending with the speed and power of a meteor. The figure dissipated, turning into a dark smoke.

“Eri, are you okay?” Izuku kneeled in front of the little girl, noticing that her clothes were different, she’s wearing a red long sleeved dress that had pastel colored floral patterns on it, with a heart emblem in the chest area, black leggings, and little red shoes like Izuku’s.

Looking at himself, Izuku realized he was wearing new clothes too, even his physical features looked a bit different. Instead of the buff muscles he earned during his many months cleaning the beach, he had lean muscles and tanner skin. He wore a black shirt with green lines crossing in the chest and converging in a circle in the back, in the center of the circle is a Dream Eater symbol, dark green baggy pants, and his iconic red shoes and crossed belts.

Eri hugged her savior, "Izuku! You came, the bird people took me again, but you came!" He came for her again, her mind knew something was wrong but the relief was too much for her to care.

"Eri calm down,” He placed his hands on her shoulders, things didn’t feel right. He didn’t think they really were in the real world anymore. Something in the back of his mind just told him that none of this was truly ‘real,’ “they can't hurt you."

"But now we’re here, and they’ll hurt us, we have to run." Eri sobbed in Izuku's chest trying to push him, making him run away from her nightmares.

"No Eri, they didn't. It’s only a dream."

"A dream?” The girl asked, confused while looking up at him. “Are you a dream too?”

"No...well more or less, I felt that you needed help, so I dived in your dream, I'm a Dream Eater now." That sounded about right, he did remember a few dreams about colorful creatures and sleeping worlds.

"Dream Eater? Why do you eat dreams? What do they taste like?" Eri tilted her head, the safety and warmth lessening her fear.

Izuku laughed at the cuteness and innocent questions. But the moment is cut short by a noise coming from the end of the hallway. In a second, Izuku is standing in front of Eri, looking alert and ready for a fight. In a dark part of the tunnel, a small figure slowly made its way to them.

Izuku seeing the form of the figure felt a sense of familiarity, in the little moment of distraction, the figure rushed at Izuku, before he could react it tackled him to the ground...and start to nuzzle him, getting a look at it, Izuku saw a rotund figure with white wool and yellow horns curved in discks. It looked like a sheep, but none that he had ever seen before, but he got the feeling that he knew this one all too well.

* * *

_“In the Sleeping Worlds you will encounter two types of Dream Eaters”_

_“Nightmares, beings of darkness that devour good dreams”_

_“And mercyful Spirits, that will help you in your journey”_

* * *

That’s it! That’s why he had the feeling like he knew this creature, “Cotton?! Is that you?!" Yes, he remembered now the good spirits which helped him during that time.

Cotton gave a happy cry, pushing his face against Izuku, the wool ticking him, “Woah, easy there, that’s a little too much” Izuku said between laughs.

Standing up, Izuku saw that Eri was staring at them weirdly, “Oh, Eri come here, I want you to meet my friend,” Eri slowly walked to them, Izuku held her hand and presented his companion.

“Eri, this is Cotton, he’s a Dream Eater, he helped me a lot...at least I think he did, the visions of these parts are still a little scrubled.” Izuku entered a mumbling fit. 

While Eri looked at him talking a mile a minute, Cotton approached her rubbing his wool on her legs. The girl jumped a little from the sudden contact, looking down she saw the happy face of the Tama Sheep.

Curiosity took the best of her, tentatively, Eri stretched her hand to Cotton’s head, hesitating one second, before starting to pet it. The wool is so soft, nothing like anything she had ever felt before. The wool felt even better than the pats and Izuku’s soft hands. They even gave her the feeling of happiness and hope. 

Izuku came back from the rabbit hole that was his mind, seeing the adorable moment. Smiling, he almost felt guilty to break the peaceful scene, “It's good to see you’re getting along so well, but we have to go.”

“Go where?” Eri asked, where could they go in a dream? She didn’t want to leave the room, the bad man was gone so what more is there to be done?

“Back home, remember this is a dream, and a bad one at that, so it’s better for you to wake up, right?” 

Eri nodded, the faster they got away from here, the better, she thought while looking at the oppressive tunnel.

“Well then, let’s get going” Izuku held Eri’s hand and started to walk, Cotton following at they’re side jumping its little sheep jumps.

After a couple minutes of walking aimlessly through the hallways of the place, Izuku is certain it’s some type of underground tunnel, the three arrived in an open space. It was a fork in the road, it wouldn’t be a problem, if not for the creatures occupying it. Red crows, with purple beaks littered the place.

“Nightmares!” Izuku summoned his Keyblade, he turned towards the spirit, “Cotton take care of Eri, I’ll handle them!”

The Nightmares, seeing the attacker, scattered, circling Izuku. He counted twelve, not the worst odds, at least in his book. Waiting for an opening, Izuku focused in the moment the Nightmares would attack.

The creatures, tired of waiting, closed the circle, trying to peck the young hero. Izuku took action, rushing ahead, he dodged the incoming attack and escaped the siege, jumping at the wall, he activated Flowmotion, jumping again almost reaching the ceiling, He charged the power of his aura into his Keyblade, swinged it down, diving to the ground. The attack was strong enough to create a shockwave, sending the Nightmares flying.

Four are defeated, with the strike, bursting in a cloud of dark smoke, the others get up and charge again, Izuku rushes to the side, doing his best to dodge the attacks of the crows. Stopping abruptly, he got into a defencive stance, letting the last two birds crash in his Keyblade, taking the attacks. Izuku took advantage of the opening, spinning his body, he batted the crows, sending them crashing in the wall, where they bursted into dark clouds.

“Half down, Half to go!” Izuku taunted the remaining Nightmares. Almost all of them took the bait, charging at him, but one turned to the side where Eri watched, amazed behind Cotton. The lone crow charged at them. Eri noticed it too late, before the bird could even get near her, Cotton lunged, throwing his horns like saws with a flick of his head.

The strike sends the crow to the ground, Cotton, recovering his horns, dashed at the downed enemy, jumping and rolling like a ball, the Tama Sheep flattened the Nightmare, dispelling it.

Izuku, sliced the last Nightmare that he decided to name Scare Crow, sees the end of the Dream Eater battle. Dismissing his Keyblade, Izuku walked back to them, “That was a nice workout, finally getting better at the whole ‘fight to survive’ thing” Izuku gave a laugh while putting his arms behind his head, Cotton giving a victorious cry, while Eri look at them starstruck, her mind full of childish wonder.

"You’re coming along just fine," A voice said, from behind them.

Izuku jumped, quickly pushing Eri behind him, Izuku turned towards the voice prepared to fight. Only to be greeted by a familiar figure.

"You! You are that look-alike from those dreams!" Izuku is surprised, it’s the carbon copy that he saw on the pillar with the glass image.

The lookalike didn’t appreciate the description, "Hey, you can't call yourself a lookalike" He said, waving his hands around.

"Stop that! I’m me and you are you!" Those dreams always had this Izuku there, but most of the time they felt like two completely different people. This one is confident and even had some amazing friends, while he was just himself.

"Nope, I’m you, the piece of you that remembers."

Izuku tilted his head, "Remember what?" Did something happen to him? Did it have something to do with those dreams and visions?

"Everything, what do you think the visions are about? They’re the memories in your heart, of the life and the people you hold dearly."

"But I don't remember these people! And the visions don’t make sense! Who are those people with you on the beach all the time?! No matter how hard I try, I can't remember them!” Izuku almost felt like he would cry, his chest hurt so much, “And that one boy, why do I miss him so much? Why do I miss a person I’ve never met? Even if I don’t remember, it shouldn’t hurt so much. Their names, not even their faces but I know they’re your friends!” 

The other Izuku gave a soft sigh and shook his head, "You know that’s not true. They’re your friends too. Being on this side of the conversation isn't fun." He muttered to himself, looking in the eyes of his clueless self he sighed again before smiling, "Well, I think I can give you a little tip, it starts with an S."

* * *

_"Sorry Kairi, but I can’t tell you"_

_"Please Izuku, I remember you and Riku, but don't matter how hard I try, I can't remember him"_

_"Well, I think I can give you a little tip, It starts with an S"_

* * *

“Glad to help you remember a little more, but now it’s better for you to go.” The other Izuku pointed to a way on the fork in the road, “Follow that way, it should get you two out of this place.”

Izuku turned to look at the indicated path, when he looked back, the other him was gone. “That sure is annoying” Izuku sighed, looking down at Eri. “Well let’s go Eri, the faster we get out, the faster we got away from all the crazy.”

“Izuku, who was that?”

“Honestly? I don’t know.”

“He looks like you.”

“Yeah, weird huh?” 

Eri's reply was a soft nod.

Not wasting any more time, they turned, entering the corridor. Following it leads them on a path without further dangers, by the end, a simple wooden door stands before them.

"I think this is it." Izuku walked to the door, giving Eri one last look to see if she was okay. The little girl nodded back, and Izuku took that as a confirmation. Opening the door, the two entered a small room, it was dark, Izuku could feel something weighing in his chest.

"Eri..." The figure of a man came from the dark, his features hidden by the shadows. "Don't you think that’s enough? You’re mingling with the sick." The figure gave another step, darkness surged. Izuku is sent flying against the wall, Cotton rolling by his side.

Eri remained frozen in place. She’s shaking, her eyes full of fear.

"You’re throwing away the chance I gave you, of using your rotten curse for something useful, after all these years, and all the hurt you’ve caused, THAT IS HOW YOU REPAY ME!" The figure is in front of Eri, looming over her. The closeness made the details clear, the red tranche coat the shade of blood, the white surgical gloves, the black bird mask hiding his mouth and nose, and the piercing yellow eyes.

"If that’s how you behave, then you have to be punished." The figure oozed darkness, slowly changing. Growing bigger, the coat became a red feathered body, the mask turning into a beak with the stitches deformed into a crazed smile, the gloves stretched into claws. The yellow eyes stayed the same, piercing into the girl's heart.

The little girl's heart who is silently screaming, praying for help. A call that is answered, the heart of a hero, connected to others, pushed against the darkness.

The giant Nightmare raised its clawed hand for a strike, Eri was frozen in fear, closing her eyes, she waited for her end.

BANG! 

Izuku with a burst of Flowmotion dashed to her in time to block the attack. Using all his strength, Izuku held his Keyblade, pushing against the Nightmare.

"All this time, you waited for a hero to save you…" One For All burned, it’s energy merging with the aura of Flowmotion, making it a green color, lightning arcs dancing over it.

Izuku turned to look towards the frozen girl, "But you don't have to wait anymore, because I’LL BE YOUR HERO!" In a single push, Izuku sent the Nightmare flying back, destroying a wall.

With a smile and his eyes burning with determination, Izuku turned to Eri "So don't fear, I am here!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was brought to you by me, and my spiritual guides keeperofhounds and Silverbits.
> 
> Join the discord (remember to delete the spaces)  
> discord . gg / NcgyeK


	4. Thunderbolt

**Chapter 4: Thunderbolt**

  
Izuku bolted from his spot towards the ominous figure, this unknown being who had caused this little girl's suffering. The Nightmare posed to attack, but at the last second, Izuku placed himself between Eri and the Nightmare. Raising his Keyblade above his head he blocked the blow, his knees bucking against the weight of the attack.

Izuku felt the power of One For All burn in his veins, they glow bright red, the energy bleeds into his magic, the aura of Flowmotion overflows with it, becoming the color green, lightning arcs form from the sheer amount of energy, jumping all over his body in discharge.

The Nightmare is sent flying, crashing into a wall and caving it, the force from the impact sending cracks spider-webbing through it.

In that moment, Izuku felt the whole word slow down, the power filling him. He turned to Eri, smiling a brilliant smile, the smile of a hero, he proclaimed to the whole world, lifting his Keyblade towards the sky, "Have no fear, I am here!"

The words reached Eri's heart, the smile that saved her dispelled the shadow of fear which terrorized her for so long, filled her with hope. She is finally safe, because there is someone there who would put their entire being to protect her. Even if this battle was only a dream, Eri had no doubt Izuku would fight just as hard in the waking world.

Izuku motioned to Eri, never taking his eyes off the downed Nightmare, "Cotton, I’m trusting you to keep Eri safe, I’m gonna teach this overgrown scare-crow some manners." He could feel the air rumbling with every step he took, he tightened his grip on his keyblade in preparation of a counter attack.

The Nightmare, which Izuku started to call Overhaven, got up roaring at him, Izuku didn't even flinch, he wasn't willing to let fear cloud his heart. The power of One For All overcharged his body, giving the teen courage and strength to face the whole world with a smile. Giving into fear is easy, smiling in the face of adversity is harder.

The combatants are locked in a stare-down. Neither willing to make the first move, but neither willing to give an inch. Cotton herds Eri away towards a pillar, where she is out of harm's way, but is still able to see the upcoming battle. 

Within a second, the combatants dash at each other, the Nightmare, using his reach to his advantage, tries to batter Izuku with a claw. The young hero sees the strike coming, bending his knees, he jumps above the strike, pulling his arm back he punches the creature with the handle of his Keyblade.

"DETROIT SMASH!"

The attack hits the creature's face with force of a truck, sending it once again smashing into the wall. The Overhaven roars in rage, sinking his claws in the wall, it ripple like the surface of water. The cement changed form, becoming sharp spikes, shooting towards Izuku. 

The boy kicked the air, he dashed forward. In the last second, Izuku started to swing his Keyblade, destroying the spikes.

Spinning his weapon in his hand, Izuku made a trust attack, the speed of his short flight carrying him and adding to the momentum of the hit.

The Nightmare didn't have time to react, the hit making his body burst through the wall. The monster landed loudly against the ground, Izuku saw that they were now in an open chamber, pipes and lights hanging from the ceiling.

The Overhaven got up and opened his arms, slamming them in the ground, making a pillar shoot under the monster, giving it a higher ground.

Izuku was thinking that the monster was trying to retreat, but then the room started trembling, more pillars rose and the Nightmare moved from one to the other. Izuku did his best to follow the movements of his enemy, but in the second he lost contact, that’s when the monster lunged at him.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl, the claws closing up on him, Izuku tried to force his body to dodge. When the end was almost upon the young hero, a flash of light hit his eyes, the sound of thunder reached his ears.

The Overhaven is tackled in the air by a purple and green figure, launched against a pillar. Izuku's eyes are fixed on the figure, a horse-like Dream Eater, he had a purple body and a green mane in the shape of lightning bolts.

Izuku lips couldn’t but be pulled into a smile, the familiar Electricorn seemingly returning it, its name coming to his head, "It's good to see you again Tesla,” He picked himself up having been thrown off balance, “so what about we show this sack of feathers that your lightning isn't just for show!"

Tesla gave a cry making the air crack with electricity. Izuku jumped on his back, and the power of One For All washed over the Dream Eater, the combined electric aura of the two making the lights overhead flicker.

Tesla stood in his rear legs giving a war cry before dashing against their enemy. The Overhaven got up and jumped back to the top of the pillar, but Tesla followed, his hooves cracking the pillars as he gave chase.

Izuku took the opportunity to fire some bolts of magic at the Nightmare, pointing his Keyblade at the monster, he shot his aura in bolts that made the Overhaven cry in pain with every hit.

"One fried chicken coming right up!" Izuku and Tesla stopped on one pillar, focusing they're magic together, Izuku raised Heroes Rising, "Thunderga!" A massive bolt of lightning fell, hitting the Nightmare, the attack being so powerful the pillar the monster stood on shattered, sending it falling towards the ground.

Izuku dismounted the Dream Eater, "That will teach birdy not to play with electricity" he laughed, but it was cut short when Overhaven got up from the pile of rubble, letting out a roar. With it, Scare Crow's started to pop up, flying at them.

The charge was interrupted by another roar, a stream of fire following it, taking down some enemies. Izuku looked at the source of the fire, a Ryu Dragon Dream Eater. It's body was green and white with bright red spikes in the tail, it's feet only having one claw, the wings and beak being yellow.

Another name made its way into Izuku’s mind, "I was wondering when you would join the party, Shiryu!" Izuku motioned to attach, having little worries about the new additions he felt as if he knew these Dream Eaters for a long time, his heart swelling with joy at the sight of them. These creatures, whoever they are were the best of allies in this battle.

The surviving Nightmares were closing in at that point, attempting another charge, "Hey Tesla, why don’t you deal with the bird problem on the ground while me and Shiryu finish things up here?" Izuku tilted his head to the boss who was once again on its feet, Tesla nodded, jumped down.

Shiryu landed on the pillar now that there's open space, Izuku felt a sense of deja vu, looking over his shoulder to his companion, he smirked, "Back to back?"

Shiryu tilted his head as if saying 'do you need to ask?', the two dropped into position, what followed was a scene of an action movie. The two strike the aggressors from the air in synchrony, a dance of slashes and strikes, punch and kicks switching with claws, orange flames and green lighting flying. 

In no time at all, the only ones standing are the green duo. Izuku smiled at his friend, "Now let's go help Tesla before he gets all the fun!". The boy and Dream Eater jumped off the platform, free falling through the air, they saw the Electricorn in a standstill with the Overhaven, The two attacking and retreating without gaining any ground. 

Izuku crossed the air, aiming directly at his enemy, he made an overhead swing, taking the Nightmare by surprise. Shiryu followed with a breath of flames, lighting the monster's feathers on fire.

Tesla uses the opening to charge an electric attack, sending a bolt from his horn, scoring a direct hit on the creature's chest.

Izuku charged, the Dream Eaters followed his lead, they started a barrage of attacks, working like a well oiled machine, hits are dealt in a fast pace, blows are blocked and countered, the three companions where in the middle of the dance of the daring, and that was a dance they knew by heart. 

In a last combined strike, the Nightmare is sent skidding back, "Let's end this guys!" Izuku holds his Keyblade with two hands, the Dream Eaters standing by his sides, the three glowed, Tesla and Shiryu turning into an orb of lightning and fire respectively, the two converging on the tip of Heroes Rising, "Plasma Burst!".

The fused orb shoots an energy beam, hitting the Overhaven, carrying it off the ground, smashing it through the remaining pillars and ending in the wall, where it blows into a dome of light.

Izuku covered his eyes to prevent himself from getting blind, when the light of the attack died out, Tesla and Shiryu reappeared in a flash of light. Izuku moved his hand away, the Overhaven was gone, the Overhaven was defeated. Slinging his keyblade over his shoulder he looked over to his friends, who gave victorious cries in return. 

Looking back to the hole on the wall he came from, Izuku saw Eri, she had a look of amazement in her eyes, the same look he had every time he saw a hero. Walking to her, Cotton approached the other Dream Eaters and they greeted each other.

Eri’s eyes are glued on Izuku's shining figure, the green lighting arcs dancing at every step. He kneeled in front of her, petting her head softly, the energy he was emanating tickling her, "See Eri, you have nothing to fear," Izuku's smile was even brighter, "So let's go home."

Eri nodded, the overwhelming pressure that weighted her heart fading, she felt her eyelashes get heavy. Izuku held her in his arms, with a last wave to the Dream Eaters, she fell asleep.

Giving one last look to his friends, Izuku nodded, the goodbyes he received being the last thing he saw.

* * *

Izuku floated in the dark, opening his eyes he saw a mass of darkness covering something in front of him. 

Summoning his Keyblade with a flick of his wrist, he pointed ahead, the aura flowing through it, shooting out, flying through the void like a thunderbolt crossing a stormy sky. It dispelled the darkness, revealing what was buried. A pillar with a glass image of Eri. It’s surroundings were red, with Eri seated in the middle, looking at the distance, as if watching the setting sun, she wore the same clothes from the dream, with the addition of two dark green belts crossed in a X, that made Izuku couldn’t help but be a little embarrassed, it’s obvious where she got that fashion choice from.

It glows with a warm light that washes over Izuku, while his sight is filled with white, he hears a soft voice.

"Thank you, for saving me, and for giving me hope."

* * *

The Other Izuku is standing on the pillar with Izuku's image, looking at the blank disks, the top one started to glow, and an image of Eri appeared on it.

"Good to see that no matter what happens, I can still help those in need," he turned around, "Don't you all think so too?"

A group of eight figures stood behind him silently watching with soft smiles.

* * *

Izuku woke with Eri shaking him, slowly getting up, Izuku opened his eyes. He was still hugging Eri, and the green aura still covered him.

"Izuku, you’re glowing," Eri said, clinging to the older boy.

"Yeah, I am."

The two looked at each other for a moment, before bursting in laughter. Izuku noticed that something was different about Eri. She showed happiness for the first time since Izuku brought her into his home, it was as if her heart was free from the shadow that held it for so long, Izuku promised silently that he would protect that happiness and never let the darkness take it ever again.

The sound of laughter brought Inko to check on the kids, she had a lot of surprises when opening the door, “IZUKU! Why are you glowing?!” Her outburst only made them laugh more. Seeing that there was no danger in it, Inko sighed in relief, “Okay, Eri come with me to freshen up, Izuku tone down the light show for now.”

“Yes, mom” Izuku put Eri on the ground, waving to her to go, the little girl, still giggling, waved back, walking with Inko out of the room. Izuku looked at his hands and arms, still glowing with One For All, “One For All fused with Flowmotion, so now it’s something different,” Izuku hummed to himself, he tilted his head from one side to the other, he smiled at the feeling of energy coursing through his entire body. “What about... Full Cowling!?”

He stood there for a few seconds before a thought made its way into his head, “But how do I turn it off?”

Izuku stood there for a few minutes before closing his eyes, he focused on seeing with his heart. The energy felt as if it was connected to the past users, them all working to give him strength. Their hearts and his were connected and surprisingly enough this wasn’t even their full power. Probably five percent of it in total, he wasn’t strong enough for the full power, maybe someday though, just not today. 

Focusing back on his task, Izuku tried to imagine a lock, closing and cutting off the connection, opening his eyes, he saw that the aura died off, “Huh, not bad for the first time...that I didn’t break any bones.”

Satisfied with his progress, Izuku got up, preparing himself for the day. After freshening up, he helped his mother in preparing breakfast, she still couldn’t help but be surprised with how good he was in the kitchen.

Eri was drooling by the time the meal was ready, sitting down, the family started to eat, after some time Inko broke the silence, “So, Eri you slept well?” 

“Yeah! Izuku was in my dream, and he protected me from the bird monsters!” Eri replied, between mouthfuls.

Inko smiling at the cute display, “That’s good Eri, but don’t talk with your mouth full.”

The interaction warmed Izuku’s heart, barely a day and they already looked like a family.

“So Izuku, why were you glowing?” Inko asked, both curious and concerned. Was his quirk acting up, she didn’t know what to think about this strange late-blooming quirk.

“Well I had a dream and learned some new tricks,” Izuku said, honestly not thinking about how out there the truth really was. 

Inko thought almost nothing about the declaration, strange dreams were common with her son, “Okay, honey we’re going to buy Eri some new clothes, I want you to get ready to go out, but you’ll have to tell me about this strange dream.”

After cleaning the table and washing the dishes, the small family left the house. After taking the train to the city's more populated area, they made their way to a clothing store.

Izuku was really glad for All Might's training, without it he wouldn't have been able to carry all the bags, his mother ended up going a little overboard with the shopping, but at least now Eri has all the necessary things.

Speaking of the little girl, she was looking at all the stores and people with eyes shining with curiosity, like a child that was discovering the world for the first time, like Izuku saw himself in the visions when he visited a new place.

Ending they're little expedition, they returned home in time for lunch. After a special katsudon, a reward for Izuku carrying everything the whole trip, Inko led Eri to the bathroom to take a shower and change to her new clothes.

Izuku decided to check his phone to kill the time, and saw some messages from his new friends.

_Ochaco: Hey, how are you two doing!_

_Tenya: I have been well, I hope you are not stressed by the exam results, I am positive we have succeeded._

Izuku thought about the exam after reading the message, with everything that happened he ended up forgetting all about it, but his friends were probably worried about their score. Resolving himself, he started typing.

_Izuku: How about we hang out today, get our heads off the exam and relax a little._

_Ochaco: I'm in!_

_Tenya: I suppose we could, but we can not stay out too long, we still have classes tomorrow and we can not let our education be jeopardised ._

_Izuku: Cool! Let's meet up in Dagoba Municipal Beach._

_Tenya: That was not the beach that became an illegal dumping ground?_

_Izuku: It was until I cleaned it._

_Ochaco: You cleaned a WHOLE beach?!_

_Izuku: Yeah_

_Ochaco: HOW?!_

_Izuku: Determination and hard work._

_Tenya: That is commendable, I will be glad to go and appreciate the results of your hard work._

_Izuku: Kay! Meet you two there_

Izuku put the phone down and thought about what to do on the beach, when a sudden idea struck him, getting up, going to the kitchen, he prepared a little surprise for his friends.

"Izuku!" Eri cried, running toward him with small end excited footsteps. Izuku turned to her, seeing her wearing a red dress with a green star in the middle, red shoes from the same brand as his, put wat make Izuku's heart warm was the two dark green belts crossed in a X, like he started to use since he started his training, and for some reason he couldn't really tell, he felt like there was something familiar about this situation, something that made him proud of himself.

"You look amazing Eri!" Izuku said, spinning her around.

"She sure does," Inko said, getting out of Izuku's bedroom, after the cute display in the morning she will leave the two share it (and hopefully get some adorable pictures of them).

Izuku turned towards his mother, "Hey mom, can I take Eri with me to the beach?" Izuku asked while caring Eri in his arms, the little girl giving him a bear hug, or at least trying to.

That isn't fair, Inko thought, I can't say no when they are being that cute, "Okay, but don't stay out too late,” She then pointed to him, “and you better not get shot at again mister." Izuku gave an awkward laugh while scratching the back of his neck, he really shouldn't have said that, he didn’t even think that it actually happened.

Taking his things, he sent a message to his friends saying he was already in the way, when he saw that someone else was online, taking a sudden decision, he sent a message. 

_Izuku: Hey Kacchan! Wanna hang out?_

_Kacchan: Why would I want to hang out with you, Deku?!_

_Izuku: Because we’re friends_

_Kacchan: ..._

_Kacchan: When and where?_

_Izuku: Dagobah beach_

_Kacchan: The place you cleaned?_

_Izuku: Yup_

_Izuku: Wait how do you know that?_

_Kacchan: None of your damn business!_

_Kacchan: I’ll meet you there_

And with that, Katsuki went offline. Izuku just shrugged it off and headed out, giving Eri a piggyback ride when they got on the street. 

"Where are we going Izuku?" Eri asked, getting comfortable on Izuku's back, he looked at her from over his shoulder, "We are going to hang out with my friends."

"We are?" Eri asked, a little worried, the thought of having to talk to new people wasn't exactly the best in her mind. 

Izuku noticed it and reassured her, "Hey don’t worry, Ochaco and Tenya are really nice, and Kacchan is a good guy deep down, he just gets loud a bit sometimes."

As if summoned by his name, the blonde bomber shouted after turning a corner and getting in the same street as them, he wore cargo pants, boots and a black muscle shirt, "Hey, Deku! What the hell are you thinking calling me to-who is the kid?".

"Hi, Kacchan!" Izuku greeted his friend, if the fact he came was any indication. 

"Answer the goddamn question, Deku!" Katsuki shouted, but without the usual bite he had while talking to others.

"Okay okay, Kacchan this is Eri,” Izuku lifted Eri to emphasize the little girl, he turned his head to face her, “Eri this is my friend Kacchan, don't let his angry face scare you, you get used to it after a while.” Izuku laughed, when Eri giggled too. 

Katsuki, while annoyed, didn't respond with his usual swears, "Why are you carrying a kid, Deku?" He almost sounded worried, even if he would never admit it.

"Well, it’s kinda of a long story, I'll tell you on the way." Izuku started to walk with Katsuki, recounting the events of the day before, Eri sneaking glances at the blonde, all the while he pretended not to notice.

"You got shot!" Kacchan shouted.

"Yeah, why is everyone so fixed in that part?" Izuku's answer was a punch upside the head, by the blonde.

"Because you could have died you fu-freaking idiot." 

That made Izuku pause, with an incredulous look, he turned to Katsuki, "You censored yourself?" Izuku asked as if someone had just told him that his father was All Might, the concept of Bakugo Katsuki not swearing felt blasphemous.

"There's a kid here, even I'm not that bad" Katsuki felt annoyed for both the incredulous stare and the obvious disbelief, he could control his language, he just normally didn’t want to, that was no need to look like he just murder someone. It was sort of bogus but even he could read the room that if he upset Eri then Izuku would get upset too.

"Well who knew, miracles do happen" Izuku laughed, while Katsuki glared at him, Eri tried to stiff her giggles.

"So aunt Inko adopted her?"

"Well yeah, she adopted me so I think we are in the same boat." Izuku took a second to realize Katsuki had stopped walking, turning around he saw that he was standing still and staring at him. 

"What’d you mean you’re adopted?" Katsuki spoke with a calm that was terrifying, a chill crossed Izuku's spine, he’s never seen the bomber so calm, even then he could feel the anger emanating from him.

Izuku decided to tell the truth, he wasn’t ashamed of it, he actually felt proud for calling Inko ‘mom,’ as she clearly loves him. "Well, a couple months ago, when I started to train to get in UA, my mom told me I was adopted, that whole thing of my dad working overseas was just to not make it obvious when people asked questions, she actually never got married or anything." 

"You are not mad at her? At everyone that lied to you?" Katsuki was dead serious, he knew that in Izuku's place, he would have blown up, literally. 

Izuku gave him a look, which clearly said that he didn’t even think about getting mad. Fucking nerd. "No, it's not like it changes anything." Izuku gave a shrug and a smile. “Besides I got to meet you didn’t I?”

Katsuki nodded as if satisfied with his answer, while Eri just watched the interaction, not understanding all of it.

The two boys resume their walk, finally arriving at the beach after a couple minutes. There, two familiar figures were waiting, 

"Izuku-kun! Here!" Ochaco called him waving her arm to catch his attention, she wore red knee length shorts, a pink t-shirt, and light pink sneakers. At her side Tenya too was waving, he was in blue jeans, a white button up shirt, and dark blue running shoes. 

"Ochaco! Tenya! Good to see you again." Izuku ran at his friends, Katsuki right behind him, grumpling something under his breath.

Now with his friends, standing in the entrance of the beach, Izuku let Eri down and made some quick introductions pointing at each person, “Eri these are Uraraka Ochaco and Iida Tenya, guys these are Eri and Kacchan”

“Oi! don’t go telling them that stupid nickname!”

“But Kacchan, you’ll probably just give them some nicknames too, I know you’re bad at remembering names, that’s why you started calling me Deku” Izuku still remembered when the two are kids, Katsuki forgot his name all the time, he started to call Izuku ‘Deku’ after trying to read his name for the first time. The nickname stuck, and after realizing that it was easier than trying to remember names, Katsuki started to come with one for every person he met.

Katsuki huffed, “Whatever, the name is Bakugou Katsuki” Izuku just chuckled, amused. Tenya watched the interaction, deducting that both boys knew each other well, while Ochaco just giggled alongside Eri.

“It is a pleasure to meet you” Tenya bowed perfectly ninety degrees, while Ochaco just gave them a nod before saying, “I think we better go”.

"Yeah let's go, I want to show Eri the beach." Izuku grabbed Eri and walked to the sand, the sea breeze ruffling their hair.

After reaching halfway to the water, Izuku put Eri in the sand, "So? Do you like it."

Eri was quiet for a moment, taking the view in, hearing the soft crash of waves, "It’s like the land, the sea and the sky are meeting"

* * *

_"There's just something special about beaches hum?"_

_"Yes, is like the if the land the sea and the sky are meeting"_

_"Huh, never thought you had a poetic side S̵͚͒̕ọ̸̱͐͋r̷̛̼͎͆ą̶̮͑͑"_

* * *

"Izuku" Eri's voice brought Izuku back to reality, he saw the worried faces of his friends, "Sorry guys, I think I spaced out a little." He scratched the back of his neck.

"You sure you are okay Izuku-kun?"

"Yeah, good enough to do THIS!" Izuku said while mockingly punching Katsuki's arm, "You are it!" Turning around Izuku bolted out of the reach of the blonde, running along the sand while laughing.

Katsuki wouldn't let Deku simply get away with it, with a shout, he chased after the greennet.

Ochaco and Tenya watched surprised by that, but the sound of Eri's laughs made them smile too, "Your brother and his friend are quite lively.”

The girl gave a jump after hearing Tenya talking to her, but looking at the kind boy, she gave a nod. And then what he said registered for her, her brother, was that what they are now? The idea of being family with the boy who saved her made her smile, another thing she could not do if it wasn't for Izuku.

The boy in question ran for his life, laughing all the while, the sea breeze in his face and the rush of the run made his heart feel warm. He missed this, even if not being sure exactly what it was, friends? The beach? The feeling of being happy and sharing it with others? He didn't know, but at that moment, it didn't matter, because he was happy.

After some hours, the sun was already setting, the five friends were sitting on the wall at the edge of the sand, watching the sunset. 

"I almost forgot!" Izuku said with a jump, startling the others. Izuku then pulled light blue popsicles from...somewhere, "The day is not complete without Sea-Salt Ice Cream!"

He passed one to everyone, the others still questioning where he kept them. After everyone got their ice cream, they bite it, "SALTY!" They screamed, not expecting it, after a second, a sweet taste replaced it, the contrast making it even better.

"Hmmm, this is actually pretty enjoyable, where did you buy them Izuku-san?" Tenya asked, Izuku got him to start calling him by his first name after a lot of convincing (and a little help from Eri's puppy dog eyes).

Izuku took a bite from his ice cream, "I made them."

"Since when can you make ice cream, Deku?" Katsuki was having a lot of surprises that day, from finding out that his friend is adopted, to his crazy rescue of the girl currently in Izuku's lap enjoying her ice cream, and now figuring that clumsy Deku actually made some damn good ice cream, even if he wouldn't admit it.

"Huh? I don't know-"

* * *

_"The day is not complete without Sea-Salt Ice Cream!"_

_"You don't think you’re exaggerating a little Axel?"_

_"If you are going to complain then you don't get any."_

_"Hey! I wasn't complaining, Roxas, Xion, back me up here!"_

_"Sorry but you are own your own, haha"_

* * *

Again Izuku saw a vision of people that made his heart ache, why did it hurt so much to see someone he’s never met? Or did they meet? These questions only made his heart ache more.

"Izuku," That made Izuku focus in the present, Katsuki's hand was on his shoulder, he was making an expression that could even be called concerned. But the thing that really stood out was that he used his name, for the first time in years.

"Yeah."

"You’re crying," Izuku realized that a single tear was running down his face, he normally cried a lot, but that single tear felt different, it was lonely, full of sadness and longing. 

All his friends were looking at him, faces full of worry, that took some of the weight in his heart. In that moment he knew that they were true friends, that they would always be at his side, and with that clarity, he decided to open his heart to them.

"I'm okay, is just that… I've been having these weird thoughts lately."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This amazing chapter was brought to you by me and my awesome companions, keeperofhounds and Silverbits.
> 
> Join the discord (remember to remove the spaces)  
> discord . gg / stAGY4V


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